Some random thoughts and ideas on music 2.0 November 7, 2007
Posted by ashz in Asian Music Scene, DRM, Malaysian music scene, Mobile content, Music 2.0, downloads, mp3, music, music business, music piracy, technology, technopreneur, web 2.0.4 comments
1- Bands should go Indie, and treat their music as water, yeah a resource which should be managed and marketed in volume, not per copies, bundling and cross selling their products as an “experience” is the way to go
2- Telcos and brands should start exploring the dance community as another untapped market, the demographics are just right for aggressive product cross selling
3- Mobile advertising is an interesting idea to explore
4- A flat music subscription fee for unlimited music downloads is another solution against music piracy in Asia
5- According to Gerd Leonhard, mobile devices are the new Internet platform, companies should harness this new territory NOW!
6- I strongly urge Major labels to work together to develop a competitor portal to itunes, this time, instead of developing another ipod, venture into mobile devices and interoperability
7- I think there is no passion in the music business anymore, well, at least in Malaysia. The executives don’t even know what the band sounds like, its just dollars and cents talk. So angry.
8- Events and concerts should start selling mobile content of their featured artist and bundle it with other merchandise. My personal case study on this is with the recent Global Gathering. 1146 ring back tone downloads in 2 days is not bad at all..
9- Mr. Sandy Monteiro, thank you for the new RBT model, now THAT new model really makes sense. I apologize for the bashing, I received info from very bad sources. As for Maxis, this new model makes more sense and on behalf of the music industry, I totally support it. I can only publish the new business mode after it is made public. Just watch out for this space!
*This is subject to changes from Maxis
** I might be removing this info if Maxis feels that it is inappropriate for me to publish this
10- I think Maliq & D’Essentials’ new album is totally AWESOME!!
6ixth sense is number 4 on the ERA.FM local chart! September 3, 2007
Posted by ashz in Asian Music Scene, General, Malaysian music scene, Mobile content, Music 2.0, downloads, mp3, music, music business, technopreneur.6 comments
I received an SMS from my boss last weekend. I was still groggy from the whole Malaysian Independence Day celebration, my head was still dizzy and good news is always welcome. Our project band 6ixth sense is at number 4 in the local charts now. I swear I can hear my boss screaming with joy on the other end. Unconvinced, I browsed the site and Lo! I was in tears. Our hard work is really really paying us off. In fact, further internet discoveries showed that the single has been receiving very positive feedback indeed. Oh by the way, look out for the video clip which shall be aired via Hotlink’s TV spot soon!
Crazy innit?
Notice that last week the song was at number 13 and shot straight up after the video clip was released in Youtube. My assumption is that users whom viewed the video clip were really into the song, thus, spreading the virus even further to their mates? Or perhaps our viral newsletters affect users in some way that it created alot of buzz? To be honest, I’m not entirely sure
Okay here are my action plans to boost up the song in the chart:
1- Send out more viral newsletters
2- Mention about this achievement in our weekly tabloid insertions
…And we shall see whether this goes as planned!
A software that can calculate your song’s hit potential…Alien technology at it’s best! August 6, 2007
Posted by ashz in Asian Music Scene, General, Malaysian music scene, Music 2.0, downloads, mp3, music, music business, technology, technopreneur, web 2.0.1 comment so far
I know it sounds crazy, but Hit Song Science or HSS for short, which was featured at London Calling this year has caused considerable buzz among industry experts. The software was developed through extensive mathematical research on other hit songs. Complex algorithms will be used to compare between your uploaded song with other hit songs similar to your song’s algorithms. A score will be give as in a scale of 1-10, if your song scores 7.5 and above, then, according to the software, would be an instant hit and would require minimum marketing initiatives to launch the song. Of your song scores below 7.5, then your song might need more marketing initiatives to launch the song to become a hit. Crazy, I know.
Your song will then be put among clusters in a “universe” of songs. If your song happens to be among the “hit” cluster of similar sounding songs, then your song is considered worthy as a hit. This is again based on the algorithms.
‘The HSS software compares the sonic characteristics of a new piece of music with a database of the analyzed data of music that has demonstrated commercial success in the past, either through record sales, digital downloads or radio airplay.’
A report will be produced once the analysis is completed and the report will contain your score, and a list of songs in proximity with your song.
The software, or should I say service is targeted to A&R executives or record companies to gauge the potential of the song before it is released to the market. Success stories of the software includes Norah Jones, Mika and Ben Novak. They claimed that they’ve predicted the hit potential of songs by the artists even before it was released for airplay.
At the moment, the service is being offered free for public use, but the reports given wouldn’t be as detailed as in the paid version. There is even an affiliate program for other online music portals.
Generally, I have some issues.
1- Can the software analyze a song based on it’s lyrics? Song songs have minimal musical elements but is driven more by its lyrics. Can it analyze rap music?
2- Will it ultimately make all songs sound the same? Or rather, do all hit songs sound the same?
3- Will we become too dependent on softwares to dictate our listening preferences and how WE define a hit?
4- Is everything in this world that mathematical?
It’s an intriguing piece of software nevertheless, I shall try it myself with some songs tonight and we shall see the outcome of this.
An impressive collection of cool music sites July 18, 2007
Posted by ashz in General, Mobile content, Music 2.0, downloads, mp3, music, music business, startups, technology, technopreneur, web 2.0.add a comment
Reasons on why you should go INDIE July 12, 2007
Posted by ashz in Asian Music Scene, Malaysian music scene, Music 2.0, downloads, mp3, music, music business, technopreneur.1 comment so far
The music industry is like an Octopus, dangling tentacles trying to grab every single aspect of the business, and in the end, losing out on many aspects of the game. This is were you see all of the resources are drained. This is the level of focus that the big labels have. This is ‘THE’ Industry…
Facts:
1- EMI Malaysia has stop signing new artists and has imposed major cutbacks on production costs
2- Repackaged albums are the latest frenzy, or so the Major labels over here thinks
3- Major label distributors are an embarrassment
4- Major labels think revenues are ONLY based on music volume as per copies
5- With the advent of the internet, self-promotion is the way to go
…..And these were nicked from various resources
1. Even if an artist is unfortunate enough to get signed, the label is not required to produce him.
2. If an artist is produced, the label is not required to release the recording.
3. If the recording is released, the label is not required to promote it.
4. Just because a major promotes a release label, does not guarantee its success.
5. If you are even “unlucky” enough to reach the 4th step, with its above result, where do you believe you will be shortly after your release’s failure? If this does occur, you should consider yourself “lucky.”
So if you still think that your life will be sorted by signing to the Major labels, think again, the fact is, and they dont want you to know it, is that they are really scrambling to find the next best business model to sustain their business, things like revenue drawdowns, “Advertising and Promotions”, marketing and all that crap worries them. Ultimately, lets just try to look at the bigger picture: They are not selling your music, they are trying to maximize the sales of a plastic disc containing YOUR data to the masses.
This is why I strongly believe that there is NO EXCUSE for you ‘NOT’ to self promote and further sell content directly. Things are faster these days, but I’m sure you know about that.
Note to the Major labels:
In the digital world, the language is MB and GIG, so why don’t we start thinking in that language eh? *hint* In the real world, do we charge water bills to the consumers as per usage or per volume?
A new music business model for Asia is finally here! July 11, 2007
Posted by ashz in Asian Music Scene, DRM, General, Malaysian music scene, Mobile content, Music 2.0, downloads, mp3, music, music business, technopreneur.add a comment
Note to self…
Ive been toying with a lot of new music business models lately and eventually, after many hours of rethinking new strategies and approaches, I think that its finally here. Here are my objectives:
1- To think outside of the box or/and recreating the box
2- To fuse traditional music management and new media strategies
3- To re-brand music as an intangible asset, taking digital to its fullest sense
4- To associate the artist/band with Telco marketing initiatives
Action plan:
Metadome discovered a band that we believe can be pushed to their highest possible potential, invested in them and marketed them as the first full digitally released product to the masses, we created buzz among the Telcos and managed to push them as artist of the month. This move will be paralleled with our media marketing plans to further push the band. The big picture is to maximize mobile downloads and NOT concentrating on their physical releases. This classic model is based on artists such as Tila Tequila and of course, the beloved Crazy frog (The crazy frog franchise is owned by Warner music in Malaysia). Viral marketing will be explored fully, thus, bringing the potential market closer to the artists. This in turn will attract sponsors, which they have. Revenue will be generated from mobile downloads and this will result in NO participation from 3rd party distributors, heck, WE shall become the distributor, hence, minimizing the length of the revenue chain.
Impacts:
1- Minimizes piracy due from content control
2- Tapping into the Telco’s resources
3- No DRM, thus, all the consequences from this crippling technology can be avoided
4- 100% resources can be channeled to the bands development and creativity
5- Closer ties with the media
1,000,000- Reviving the Industry
I wont disclose more as this trade secret will become our recipe for success!
I shall reveal more on the band next week! Until then, stay tuned for this FIRST ever industry experiment
BLA BLA BLA BLA..
20 things you must know about music online and my amateur management skills June 26, 2007
Posted by ashz in Asian Music Scene, Malaysian music scene, Mobile content, Music 2.0, Rants, downloads, mp3, music, music business, technopreneur, web 2.0.add a comment
The month is coming to its end, but I haven’t completed all of my projects yet. The past few weeks was occupied in planning 6ixth sense’s album launch and press conference. I had a few critical deadlines that was met and the download reports from the Telco’s were already in. So in between cigarette breaks and tossing coffee cups, I realized that my management skills for this particular project was a bit sloppy and all over the place. I mean, which one should come first, the press kit or the mobile content? Can I use the excuse of never release a band before? Nah, I really felt that this phase is going to be the time where I should devise a more formidable plan in the future. As I was scouring the internet for inspiring materials, I discovered this guy and his interesting take on new media planning and survival guide. I really believe that everyone who is anyone in the music industry should read this:
The 20 things you MUST know about music online!
A very inspiring read indeed…
Anyway, here are my action plan for this week:
1- Get the press kits and press release sorted
2- Monitor the progress of their video
3- Sort out stuff for the press conference
4- Solidify industry partnerships
5-Get all the mobile products tested and ready for purchase
…Ive yet to process all this into a formulaic guide for upcoming projects
And if you are still reading this post, this is the band that I’m working on right now
Snow patrol squished the frog! March 19, 2007
Posted by ashz in Mobile content, Music 2.0, downloads, music, music business, technology, technopreneur.add a comment
Jamster reported that Snow Patrol’s Chasing cars charted the highest in Mobile downloads, thus topping the Crazy frog. Chasing Cars also toppled Crazy by Gnarls Barkley and Hips dont Lie by Shakira.
It also points out that many recording artists now use the mobile format to promote their new music to the influential teen audience. This is definitely the sort of move that adapts to the changing market due to the booming mobile market. I will definitely be keen to follow this exciting progress closely…
Mspot: The answer to mobile music streaming….well, other than the Iphone March 13, 2007
Posted by ashz in Gadgets, Mobile content, Music 2.0, mp3, music, music business, technology, technopreneur, web 2.0.1 comment so far
Mspot, a new app for mobile phones, enables users to stream music from a PC to any mobile devices. It consists of a PC music management app and a mobile client. When a user hits ‘play’ on the handset client, Remix starts streaming a song, while downloading the full track – and the rest of the playlist – in the background.
Tracks are encoded to a manageable file size while keeping users happy with the audio fidelity. The technology is entirely software based and was inspired by the Iphone. Mspot believes that the introduction of another media product in the market will definitely offer more choices to the existing mobile consumer.
Mspot aims to expand the capacity of its features by offering abilities to stream video and general mobile content as well. Partnerships are inevitable and the future is bright for this Palo Alto based company. I hope that this technology will be available in Asia in the not so near future.
Check them out here
Tia Tequila, The first digital release artist? March 9, 2007
Posted by ashz in General, Mobile content, Music 2.0, downloads, mp3, music, music business, technopreneur, web 2.0.3 comments
The best artist partnership so far has been the signing up of Tia Tequila with Endemol and INgrooves. Tia who has over 1.6 million friends and half a billion page views, is releasing her hit single ‘I love you’ and video clip in digital only format.
The partnership sees the artist signing up directly without having to go through the hassle of licensing and distribution, thus, reaching the consumers faster and of course more cost affective. According to Gerd Leonhard, the partnership is also based on the artists branding activities, something we should watch for this year.
I wonder if we could start implementing that sort of idea in Asia, where artists are signed up by a perhaps a “virtual” record label and start releasing and selling music in digital format only. This ultimately will be appealing as costs can be kept low and offers more chance of music discovery and accessibility. I also think that by partnerships with mobile content providers, we could drive a very successful marketing campaign. The only question is: Will Asia be willing to adopt this change?
