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With all the talk about the iPhone, it was almost easy to forget Apple’s product portfolio is one of the treasure chests of industry.  They make great returns on the entire iPod line.  They do a robust business with iTunes.  And of course, there’s the computer line which has a devoted, loyal fan base and a solid profit margin.

Today after the close of market, to the legions of Apple fans, and hungry investors anxious for a benchmark to measure performance of technology and consumer products, Apple announced their earnings for their fiscal third quarter.  The numbers were strong, and buried in the guidance there were hints of new products to come.

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What a difference two months makes.

Two months ago, Palo Alto based social media network Imeem was being sued by Warner Music Group for copyright infringement.  Now two months later, all is forgotten.  The suit has been dismissed.  The two are partners.

Warner Music and Imeem announced Thursday they would offer the entire Warner music and video catalog for free ad-supported streaming through imeem.  Imeem, which has about 16m active users, is focused on letting its subscribers share playlists and discover content.

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In part one of a two part article published June 19th, subtitled, “Record sales are tanking and there’s no hope in sight: How it all went wrong ” Rolling Stone magazine indirectly decreed the end of the music labels (the Big 4 at least) and the end of the music business as the world has known it.

Quoted in the article, industry attorney Peter Paterno said unequivocally “the record business is over.  The labels have wonderful assets – they just can’t make money off them.”    The numbers presented support his, and the article’s, claim. In 2000, for example, the top ten albums in the US sold 60 million copies combined.  In 2006, the top ten sold only 25m.  Digital sales (of both songs and ringtones) meanwhile, while booming, are largely in single song increments where revenues and the margins are much lower.

It’s for certain, the industry, as it once was, is on life-support.  The Big 4 (Universal, Sony BMG, Warner, and EMI) control nearly 70% of music distribution but they’ve been caught between a mess of conflicting needs and ideologies: the competing demands of traditional retailers (who themselves fear the loss of their business), the interests of the artists, and, of course the entrenched thinking of the labels themselves.    It’s been a struggle to balance those interests and adapt to the changing dynamics of the music marketplace – particularly online sales. 

The question is, is Peter Paterno correct, and is the inference in the Rolling Stone article right?  Click to Read More

With sales numbers for the opening weekend of the iPhone expected to read like the returns of a summer blockbuster, today should be a good day for Apple but an article in the Wall Street Journal may cast a small cloud over what should be the start of a good week.

The Journal is reporting that Vivendi’s Universal Music (the biggest of the Big 4 record labels by some metrics)  is “considering notifying” Apple that they aren’t interested in a long-term renewal of their iTunes contract.   The article carefully uses the word “considering” and it cites its source as “a person familiar with the situation.”   With such phrasing, it’s not so much news as rumor and innuendo but it could still be enough to dampen the start of the week.

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As part of an apparent strategy to get its musical catalog as much retail exposure as possible, Big 4 record label EMI has been signing licensing deals with, seemingly, any distributor interested.

Today, EMI will add another distributor to its slate.  EMI is expected to announce a deal with music licensing/distribution company Snocap similar to a deal it struck recently with business to business music sales company PassAlong Networks.

In the Snocap deal, Snocap will sell EMI’s music through it’s MyStores online shops which can be added to various Internet sites. Click to Read More

The world is sitting in wait for the impending iPhone release.  Gadget lust is running full throttle.  I’ve got it (gadget lust that is, not the iphone).  I won’t be waiting in line, and I won’t be switching my cell phone service – but I wouldn’t mind having the phone to play with.  That’s not going to happen, not unless someone with better connections is feeling generous, but it’s nice to dream.

Of similar dreams, I’ve speculated as far back as early May about a possible roll out of the Beatles music alongside the iPhone launch.  The most coveted online music catalog released alongside the most anticipated consumer product of the decade is just the kind of three-ring circus marketing Steve Jobs and his Apple cohorts love to put together.  Click to Read More

Getty Images is expanding its focus from images to other forms of licensed content, today adding Music. The Seattle photo agency announced it was acquiring Pump Audio, a specialist licensing agency for independent musicians, for $42m.

Pump Audio was founded in 2001 as a form of agent for independent musicians. The New York based company allows musicians to upload tracks which are then made searchable for potential licensing. If an Ad Exec, for example, is looking for a soundtrack to run behind a new Television commercial, the Pump platform, allows the Ad Exec to find and work with Independent musicians who otherwise may not have been on their radar. Pump maintains a catalog of more than 100,000 songs many of which might have been recorded explicitly for advertising. Pump licenses all the music in its archive for a flat fee. Last year, Pump reported approximately 80,000 placements. Click to Read More