Prince gives away 2.8 million copies of Planet Earth. [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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BradH
07-18-2007, 08:32 AM
Looks like he just gave the finger to the execs. I think it's hilarious.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070717-princes-cd-giveaway-another-nail-in-the-albums-coffin.html

MindGoneHaywire
07-18-2007, 09:05 AM
Not the execs...the retailers. They don't think it's so hilarious, and they're not the ones suing those engaging in illegal file-sharing, either. The remark about The Artist Formerly Available In Record Stores I saw in a UK paper that did a piece on this a few weeks ago.

I'm not saying this to defend them per se, just to clarify. I think their attitude is, they've always been subject to the whims of the labels, they've suffered for it, and they're the wrong target. I don't entirely disagree.

3-LockBox
07-18-2007, 09:40 AM
Not the execs...the retailers. They don't think it's so hilarious, and they're not the ones suing those engaging in illegal file-sharing, either. The remark about The Artist Formerly Available In Record Stores I saw in a UK paper that did a piece on this a few weeks ago. I'm not saying this to defend them per se, just to clarify. I think their attitude is, they've always been subject to the whims of the labels, they've suffered for it, and they're the wrong target. I don't entirely disagree.

I have to agree here, retailers are the wrong target. To my recollection, its the labels that drive prices, not the retailers.

I have a sneaking suspicion that Prince isn't worried about album sales in the UK. As far as new material goes, its been rumoured that Prince has about 400 finished songs in his vault, so giving away music for him doesn't represent that big of an investment. Its a good publicity stunt for a guy that doesn't need the money, and has plenty to burn. Too bad he's to a point where he needs to fall back on gimmicks.

BradH
07-18-2007, 11:04 AM
Not the execs...the retailers...they're the wrong target.

They're not a target, they're just in the way of the shooting or falling victim to the changing times or (insert metaphor here). It's not Prince's job to support retailers. I almost laughed out loud when I read that one quote about how they've always "supported" him like they invested money because they were fans or something. Bullsh!t. They did it because it sold. This is about business. They took their cut and he's not beholden to them. They sound like Marty Fufkin in Spinal Tap: "I thought we had a relationship here!".


Too bad he's to a point where he needs to fall back on gimmicks.

Gimmick, promotion, what's the difference? It's a sure sign of the changing industry when the album simply becomes a promotional device for the tour rather than the other way around. I suspect younger musicians realized this years ago.

And why is Sony BMG UK upset? They just sold 2.8 million discs to The Mail for chrissakes!

3-LockBox
07-18-2007, 11:32 AM
I almost laughed out loud when I read that one quote about how they've always "supported" him like they invested money because they were fans or something. Bullsh!t. They did it because it sold...

That was a laugh...like they'll stop carrying Prince if the albums gets hot. That really would be 'cutting one's nose off to spite their face'.


And why is Sony BMG UK upset? They just sold 2.8 million discs to The Mail for chrissakes!


It's about control. The record companies make their money. The whole reason they're going after internet radio is because they don't control it. They want to be in control of what people listen to, and not have to cater to the public's interest.

PeruvianSkies
07-18-2007, 01:15 PM
and here I was hoping he was giving away free copies of the PLANET EARTH miniseries on DVD. Dang.

BradH
07-18-2007, 01:18 PM
They want to be in control of what people listen to, and not have to cater to the public's interest.

That's why they freaked out and complained to Congress and tried to sue the internet away rather than integrate the new technologies into their business model. There are a ton of ways to make money on music and they're slowly coming around, I think. A hugely anticipated (not by me) video game called Rock Band will have two full albums for download, Who's Next and one by Metallica with more to come, the game's not even out yet. That's the thing, the record companies harp about cd sales but they make a lot on selling and licensing their catalogues. That article about Prince indicated it probably didn't make up the difference but I suspect it does.

BradH
07-18-2007, 01:20 PM
and here I was hoping he was giving away free copies of the PLANET EARTH miniseries on DVD. Dang.

HaHa! That would be sweet. Then the BBC would be on his case.

I hear that's phenomenal on Blu-Ray.

Mr MidFi
07-18-2007, 01:45 PM
HaHa! That would be sweet. Then the BBC would be on his case.

I hear that's phenomenal on Blu-Ray.

I walked into a Best Buy about a week ago, and it was playing on Blu-Ray on a 46" 1080p LCD monitor. Took me 20 minutes to get my jaw off the floor.

Troy
07-18-2007, 02:08 PM
Man, those nature shows put me to sleep. I don't care how good the picture is, they are the perfect insomnia cure.

Back to your regularly scheduled thread.

I think Prince is right, the money is in touring now. Or setting up shop in Vegas (or some other destination city) for a long run.

SlumpBuster
07-18-2007, 03:07 PM
its been rumoured that Prince has about 400 finished songs in his vault

So, why does he keep releasing seemingly unfinished ones?

BradH
07-18-2007, 07:00 PM
Man, those nature shows put me to sleep. I don't care how good the picture is, they are the perfect insomnia cure.

Well, yeah if you're talking about the ones from the 80's w/ new age music. The ones on Japanese laserdisc looked great, though. Especially if you're a videophile or a gearhead.

Luvin Da Blues
07-18-2007, 07:09 PM
Prince gives away 2.8 million copies of Planet Earth.

Thanks but no thanks...I already have enuf shiny silver coasters.

3-LockBox
07-18-2007, 09:07 PM
So, why does he keep releasing seemingly unfinished ones?

Couldn't tell ya...it's been a while since I sat down and listened to an entire Prince album. He shot himself in the foot with his "symbol" rebellion against Warner Brothers a decade ago, and slipped into obscurity (he over-estimated the attention span of his target audience by a mile).

Maybe he feels that he's put as much effort into that material as he can...maybe he really, only has a vault of demos and album outtakes...maybe he's turned into Steve Miller, Paul McCartney or Jeff Lynne and feels he's famous enough to release half-hearted ideas, or maybe he thinks he's Robert Cray or Eric Clapton and wants to release the same album 5 or 6 times in a row. Who knows.

SlumpBuster
07-20-2007, 08:34 AM
Steve Miller, Paul McCartney or Jeff Lynne and feels he's famous enough to release half-hearted ideas, or maybe he thinks he's Robert Cray or Eric Clapton and wants to release the same album 5 or 6 times in a row. Who knows.


HEYYYYY-OOOOOOOO!!! And 3-Lock Box unloads a big broadside volley taking out five elderstatesmen of rock 'n' roll in one fell swoop!

That last ELO record "Zoom" sucked so bad that my copy of ELO's "Out of the Blue" refused to share the same shelf space with it. In fact the whole "E" shelf set up refugee camps on the neighboring "D" and "F" shelves just to get away.

Let's include Tom Scholz of Boston on that list of once great, yet now irrelevant "coasters."

3-LockBox
07-20-2007, 10:29 AM
that list of once great, yet now irrelevant "coasters."

I don't know if they're irrelevant per se', but I think artists should like Miller, Lynne, and others have snookered their fanbase to a degree with some of the half-hearted, "hey look its me!" albums they've put out in the latter stages of their career. Put Todd Rungren on that list, too.

This reminds me of a thread (on another board) where we tried to decide when a particular band "jumped the shark". ;)

ForeverAutumn
07-20-2007, 11:12 AM
Prince gives away 2.8 million copies of Planet Earth.

Geez. I hope it's not to scale. Where would we put them?!


it demonstrates the degree to which album sales no longer matter as much to artists. After all, tours are where most acts make most of their money...

When I was a kid bands toured to promote an album. Usually the tour lost money or if the band was lucky it might break even. But the tour promoted the album and the profit from the record sales would, hopefully, make up for it. Now bands lose money on their albums in order to promote the tour. I find this reversal of revenue very interesting.

Luvin Da Blues
07-20-2007, 05:04 PM
Geez. I hope it's not to scale. Where would we put them?!

:idea: Actually you would want them to scale, somewhere around 1:750,000.

3-LockBox
07-20-2007, 09:34 PM
Geez. I hope it's not to scale. Where would we put them?!


I'm sorry...

but that is such a girl joke

:D

ForeverAutumn
07-21-2007, 10:29 AM
I'm sorry...

but that is such a girl joke

:D

Well, I can tell you right now that I would need a bigger purse. :p