Iron Maiden makes millions by touring countries where their music is most pirated

“No… pirating is bad. Period.”

Your declarative statement left in a comment on an article that directly contradicts that statement certainly changed my mind.

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But I’m not going to buy shit music. I recently “pirated” the discography of some artists that I sort of liked and wanted to see what else was on their albums besides the “hits” that I had only heard in the mainstream. To my surprise I didn’t like 95% of it. I’ve come across this a lot, even my favorite groups that I buy most of their stuff I only like 30-40% of an album. So I’m not paying for a CD that has one song on it I like, if I care that much I’ll buy it used - either way they aren’t making money from me.

Want me not to pirate your one song I like? Give me access to a $1 FLAC/WAV version.

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This right here. When you are small it’s all about making a name, then you get fairly well known and all of a sudden it “oh noes my records sales”. And if you get super star status then it’s all about the merc and tours. I like EDM stuff and you wouldn’t ever hear of anyone “making it” if they didn’t push their music and talents out for free (at least in the beginning.)

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To make a living as an artist, you have to work hard or be very, very lucky. To make millions from being an artist you have to work hard, or be very, very lucky.

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it’s strange how entertainment, especially in reflecting the tastes of the ‘elite’ (read clueless and useless members of any audience), fails to provide for itself. with less unnecessary competition would there be an improvement…

The champagne and cocaine addled remnants of the 60’s surge are still running the show. They refuse to modernise, the lure of the old-style easy cash machine is too much for them.

Iron Maiden - total salute to them. Excellent business, excellent music!

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non inclusion of metal (and more modern styles) of rock seems to be an intentional statement when i listen to classic rock.

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I am sorry sir, but there appears to be a mistake in your statement. NOBODY is better on his own than with Maiden.

“No… pirating is bad. Period.”

Perhaps. But more importantly, pirating was a counter-offer in the process of negotiation between the recording industry and consumers. Remember when you wanted a single song and you had to buy a CD for $18? Thanks to the negotiations that occurred in the marketplace between the industry and consumers, which included piracy, we now have $1 songs that we can buy al la carte.

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I think you’ve proved the point - the media sales industry is spiralling down in a burning fireball, and we did it - us.

(/s :))

from the article:

The São Paolo show alone grossed £1.58 million (US$2.58 million) alone.

And in a positive cycle, Maiden’s online fanbase grew. According to Musicmetric, in the 12 months ending May 31, 2012, the band attracted more than 3.1 million social media fans.

but the concerts… not so harmful

Well, the Beatles/Elvis/Stones/Etc. model of superstardom was new in the 50s and became a well oiled if highly predictable machine by the late 80s (manufactured pop bands like NKOTB). I see no reason that model of a few megabands, a lot of desperate hungry artists and a few mega-corps controlling the vast majority of the music industry should be sustained by anything other than its own merits.

I hear about music differently, I come across music differently, and I buy music differently now than I did 20 years ago. I owe squat to the big labels and feel zero obligation to keep them in business. I discover new bands through internet radio, thing shared by friends and 1000 different ways. There will likely be fewer megabands and many more bands making a living.

If the dream is the 1970 megacontract and world tour with groupies and papilloma and whatever, that is probably going to be available to fewer bands over time. On the other hand, I hear about small bands on the other side of the planet all the time - something that would never have happened before unless a music exec had chosen to give them a platform. I like this way better.

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This is all, as you say, way way better.

The thing the music bizidiots don’t get, refuse to acknowledge, is that the entire audience structure has changed fundamentally. No matter what they do, the old way is gone. They’d have to jail half the planet, and destroy their own consumers, to even remotely approach the old world. Not gonna happen.

It’s a financial titan falling, and it’s wearing no clothes.

One of those things that’s a complete no-brainer, at least in retrospect.

When coming across such an idea, the response is, how is this new? Why didn’t I see this five (or more) years ago?

Relevant:

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That is indeed what all the research shows.

“I think you’ve proved the point”

There’s a first time for everything.

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People really should learn how to spell “Colombia”

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when they wear double denim with a bumbag it’s in no way ironic

Is there a Pulitzer award for single sentences?!

The Mash is that good onna regs, blud.

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