Record Labels Are Still In The Slow Lane On The Information Highway.

"Record Labels Adopt New Technology to Sell Albums in Sagging Market
Written by Cyrus Langhorne
Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:00:00 Z


Rihanna, Usher, Chris Brown, Akon and others will lead the recording industry's first major move away from the traditional CD format with to the introduction of slotMusic next month.

According to the Wall Street Journal, SanDisk Corp. and the four remaining major record companies have teamed up to create album-filled memory cards that will be usable on mobile phones, PCs and select portable MP3 players. The first offering of releases will include 29 albums sold in MP3 format without digital locks along with an adapter to allow consumers the ability to transfer their purchases to PCs from the USB ports.

SanDisk's general manger of audio-video business Daniel Schreiber is convinced slotMusic will strive due to its multi-compatibility with different devices.

"I don't have to convince you to buy anything; you already own it," Schreiber told Wall Street Journal. "I don't have to convince you to carry anything; you're already carrying it."

Expected to sell around the $15 price point in stores like Wal-Mart and Best Buy, other artists included in the debut batch will be Robin Thicke, New Kids on the Block, Weezer, Leona Lewis and Elvis Presley.

Composed of EMI, Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group and a joint venture with Sony and Bertelsmann AG, the record companies' decision to make the digital move comes months after the success of artists like Flo Rida who previously spoke with SOHH about his record setting single "Low."

"I thought it would be big but at this magnitude I definitely couldn't predict it," he told SOHH about "Low" being No. 1 for ten weeks on Billboard's Top 100. "It's just unbelievable. I have to pinch myself sometimes."

Despite poor record sales reportedly forcing labels to try alternate methods, other artists have had no trouble selling albums including Lil' Wayne who sold over one million copies of Tha Carter III in his opening week last June.

The new device is currently scheduled to hit retail stores around mid-October."

Information Courtesy Of: Sohh.Com


CHRIS LIVE AKA SHAKER SAYS: This sounds nice, but direct downloading is still waaaaaaaaaaay easier for even your basic computer novice. As I have already covered here @ Livestyle, it's all about greater convenience and personalization.

Message To Major Record Labels: Stop being reactive and attempting to bend the public's collective will to your whims. Go back, study the market (specifically the internet) and bring some innovation to the table. Stop trying to simply repackage the same old bullshit. I mean, @ this point, artists like myself take much of the grassroots marketing of our projects into our own hands anyway ... what are Y.O.U. bringing to the table Mr. Executive?