Why Do Musicians Still Need Record Companies?

Well done, Onhwy61.
Which one of your band-mates is going to do all the legwork and put up the money for a tour? Answer...the record label.

And after they are reimbursed and take their cut, your band will get a little spending money.

Hey, Czarivey, I know a lot of other "disabled" people who don't have the luxury or fallback of being able to play music.

Tostados, me too.

Zd,

I think most data suggests that SQ is the least of the contributors to the problems killing record companies. Consumers overall don't give a sh*t. They want cheap, fast, convenient. Low quality downloads and streams are the fastest growing segments of the business.

BTW, the blu ray argument cuts this way, too. It's a dying segment that Sony (it's chief proponent) expects to shrink by almost half over the next five years.

Digital distribution (as suggested by the OP) has made record companies (and video companies) less important. And less profitable. I'm pretty sure than anyone in either of those businesses would agree with that sentiment.

I think there's a profitable niche business for high quality recordings (or high quality anything, for that matter), but the giant, hugely profitable record company is a thing of the past because people don't need it anymore. And, in total dollars, they won't pay for it, either. SQ notwithstanding.

Digital distribution is vastly cheaper than sending out physical media (CD, vinyl or tape) and should substantially cut record company's cost and increase profits. It's similar to the digital distribution of movies to cinemas.

Record labels have and will continue to evolve if they want to survive. To say that they are not necessary is a myth. Do we still need book publishers since everybody can self publish? Do we need TV stations when you can stream content? Why have financial advisors when everyone can trade on E-trade? Why have police departments when everyone can openly carry a gun?