As with most posts here all of you bring up great points but in the end the blame has got to come down to the record industry itself. There may be other things that affect their sales but inevitably it comes down to to their lack of response to these conditions.
Very stupid recording industry executives are quick to blame the internet for declining sales. If the Internet provides exposure to a product and sales decline is it the Internet's fault or does it have everything to do with an inferior product? Is a free download nothing more than a free sample? If you hear a great song or album aren't you very likely to seek out- and pay to see or buy other releases - from this artist? I know I do.
But if you plan much more short-sided where you shove a "hit" song by the next "great" new artist down the public's throat via airplay along with the 450,000 airing of "Sympathy for the Devil", and then try to sell their album with 45 minutes of noise, people get leary. Bottom line - people will buy, and more importantly come back and buy again, a good product. Sorry but I can ramble on about this forever.
Kevin
Very stupid recording industry executives are quick to blame the internet for declining sales. If the Internet provides exposure to a product and sales decline is it the Internet's fault or does it have everything to do with an inferior product? Is a free download nothing more than a free sample? If you hear a great song or album aren't you very likely to seek out- and pay to see or buy other releases - from this artist? I know I do.
But if you plan much more short-sided where you shove a "hit" song by the next "great" new artist down the public's throat via airplay along with the 450,000 airing of "Sympathy for the Devil", and then try to sell their album with 45 minutes of noise, people get leary. Bottom line - people will buy, and more importantly come back and buy again, a good product. Sorry but I can ramble on about this forever.
Kevin