Hooves on the Turf

The creators of MP3 have come up with a new file format called MusicDNA. The objective was to create a format that gives listeners an incentive to buy music legally. It intends to do so by being not just a music file, but something that brings together artist information like blogs, tweets, tour dates, recent concert footage, artwork, sleeve notes, and so on.

I know, it sounds like a joke.

Those who don’t believe in buying music won’t care for artist information. Maybe severe punishment can discourage them from pirating but that doesn’t necessarily mean they will start buying. And given that internet has become a basic commodity (so closely tied to access to information, communication channels, education), shutting down internet connections and banning users from getting one is a morally corrupt idea. It’s the internet equivalent of capital punishment.

Not everyone has the time to scour the web for new music. Finding and downloading MP3’s and getting around to listening is a lot of work for most people (even I, as a semi-music-blogger, find it too tiresome to keep up). Good-hearted enthusiasts are exceptions, but they can’t possibly pay for every band they discover (if the choice is between paying for every band and forgoing a few bands, by necessity they’ll have to forgo a few bands). The real untapped money is with the majority who are willing to pay for new music but who aren’t invested enough to discover proactively. First of all, they’re quite content with their old collection and aren’t desperate for newness, which means they’re a bit passive. They are likely to skip music blogs and  just listen to NPR and KCRW because new music curated by a credible tastemaker whose taste they already trust is a huge convenience. This is why “Best of year” lists on Lala or Hype Machine can potentially affect sales positively, and why something like Hype Machine needs to be legally protected (it makes sense out of clutter).

So in the absence of real authoritative voices, how can we make discovery a pleasant and convenient experience for this relatively passive group with spending money? That’s the real challenge.

Maybe the industry needs to back outlets that stream (in full) strongly curated playlists; collaborate with and support innovators on the web instead of seeing every one of them as a threat. We already know that handing out free music like it’s Christmas only gets you so far, and locking it up like it’s treasure will only make it less accessible. Maybe there can be promotions that let users stream an entire album a few days before it actually comes out.

Don’t neglect record player owners; they are invested collectors. One great potential for music sale is when it functions as a gift, so maybe there’s a way to make it more gift-able.

The real profit is in digital, however, so don’t make syncing to our different devices and computers such a pain in the neck. I know storage is moving to the web, so maybe this problem will fix itself over time.

Don’t underestimate the enthusiasts. They are often more effective than publicists.

And if added incentive is what’s missing, then it needs to be a meaningful incentive: maybe a ticket to an exclusive show or a unique password to a pre-sale;  maybe quality bootlegs and/or demos or extra “song credits” (or “points”) with every purchase.