I would have been satisfied with just the headline of this article. I have printed it out in various alternates just to give embodiment to what I wish for. I now have one for Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rove and the rest of the “gang” that destroyed America in such a short time span. This is now the “American Dream”, since the previous one was taken from us.
“When Napster came on the scene, it felt like a big wave coming at us, and it appeared futile to try and stop it,” says Benji Rogers, founder of London-based Pledge Music. Rogers, who has been working as a musician for more than a decade, has spent much of his time building a company that aims to surpass the fan-funding models of SliceThePie, Sellaband and Bandstocks. “We don't see the fans as venture capitalists, who are investing in our records,” he says. Instead, Rogers wants them to feel part of the process that gets a record into their hands.
Eastblished acts like Marillion, Public Enemy and Tina Dico (one of the first artists to use Pledge Music, raising £60k in just 30 days, have relied on their long-standing fanbase when leaving a major label to pursue their own direction. But can fan funding really work for artists who are just starting out? Rogers thinks so, but it takes time and effort. He says one of the mistakes record labels make is trying to squeeze a year-long development (with regards to marketing, promotion etc) into a couple of weeks. “When I started out, we collected addresses and phone numbers. Then we'd follow up by calling and sending letters to people on our mailing list. It was a lot more time-consuming and expensive than it is now.”
The first question Pledge asks when approached by an artist is how big is their mailing list. Based on that, they calculate how much money they can raise. Once they've worked it out, the Pledge team sits down with the artist to find out what they can add to the fans' experience to raise that money. The higher the amount a fan pledges, the more “extras” they get.
“£8 might seem expensive for an EP download, but when you add to it an eight-week campaign of updates, like video blogs from the studio, people don't mind,” says Rogers. In fact, American fans paid $50-70 for a T-shirt and signed CD, despite the asking price being much less. “We thought the credit card company had made a mistake, so we contacted them asking if they wanted more than one. They replied: “No, but if I have to, sure.” They just wanted to support us and help us reach the pledge amount.”
Rogers understands that some artists see the studio as an inner sanctum and don't want to show the recording process. Instead, he suggests other ideas to add value, such as sending fans handwritten lyric sheets, or letting them choose five songs for the artist to play at a soundcheck and sending them the recordings with a personal shout-out.
Pledge Music isn't interested in owning any of the rights to the music, and makes its money by charging a 15% commission on the amount raised. “It usually works out to be 9-11% in the end, since we cover credit card fees, processing and VAT,” says Rogers.
There are four corners to the Pledge concept: music, fans, recording studios (“if we bring them work, they'll bring us work”) and charities. The artists choose a charity they're passionate about and donate a percentage of the money raised to it.
On Tuesday morning, a pledge was launched for Irish artist Duke Special. That afternoon, he reached 43% of his target, by offering fans the opportunity to write a song with him for £100, and a private sightseeing tour of Belfast for £1,000.
“I believe, in their hearts, the fans want to do the right thing,” says Rogers. “We can't convince teenagers to buy CDs. The quest for me is to give meaning to it, so they don't want to steal it.”
Pledge Music is a fan-funded investment platform with a heart, which makes it a welcome alternative for artists who want to take control of their careers.
discount nba jerseys,
discount nhl jerseys
Button-down collar economists are not known for shouting matches, but on CNN, Stephen Leeb and Peter Schiff had at it regarding auto industry bailout loans.
Economist Stephen Leeb insisted that President George W. Bush, not exactly known as a liberal, is doing the right thing by extending $13.4 billion in auto industry bailout loans to General Motors and Chrysler, followed by another $4 billion in the spring.
Economist Peter Schiff insisted that the government “should let market forces play out,” with General Motors and Chrysler entering bankruptcy.
The shouting match between Leeb and Schiff almost entered into commercial time for CNN, but Leeb and Schiff represented a great divide among Americans.
Somehow, the combined $17.4 billion in President Bush's package is creating more attention and more debate than the overall $700 billion bailout for the financial firms on Wall Street, and the nearly equal $650 billion minimum that is estimated for income President-elect Barack Obama's economic stimulus package.
Somehow, the auto industry is getting more attention than the Wall Street industry.
Only half of all Americans can afford to invest directly in the stock market, and many of those do so indirectly through their companies' 401-k and/or Roth IRA retirement plans. Most Americans don't understand Wall Street, even while they are invested in Wall Street. Take witness in the $50 billion scam that is alleged under Bernard Madoff. Even so-called sophisticated investors were ripped off when they gave their money to Bernard Madoff. Everyone is still trying to explain.
On the other hand, virtually all Americans feel that they understand the auto industry. They simply compare General Motors and Chrysler and Ford, the Detroit-based companies, to Toyota and Honda and Nissan, the Japanese imports. A majority of Americans perceive that the imports are of higher quality, which way have been true 20 years ago, but perceptions linger.
Furthermore, the false stories of United Auto Workers members making $75 an hour have gained legs of their own. These stories are embraced by the same crowd that still perceives Barack Obama as the candidate of radical terrorist Muslims. The typical United Auto Workers wage is more like $20 to $25 an hour, but critics have figured in everything from health care coverage to pension benefits to retirees.
Republican senators such as Richard Shelby from Alabama and Bob Corker from Tenessee have supported tax breaks for Toyota and Honda and Nissan to establish non-union shops in their states. At the same time, they have blocked Congress from providing aid to General Motors and Chrysler. This forced President Bush to act on his own.
President Bush stated, “Such a collapse (by GM or Chrysler) would deal an unacceptable blow to all American workers, even beyond the auto industry.” President Bush is focused on the total economy, and he is being realistic. President Bush figures that if Wall Street needs a $700 billion bailout, then protection of auto industry jobs is worth a $17.4 billion share.
SOURCE
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1208/16782.html
discount nfl jerseys,
football jerseys
No comments:
Post a Comment