eMusic fattens up on Sony Music releases
What do labels with antiquated sales methods do when the chips are down? They get desperate and make an array of mistakes. And then, there’s that rare occasion, when one finally makes a smart move that is sure to convince the rest of the Big Four that a change in ethos is necessary. This is that move: Sony announced earlier this month its plan to deliver eMusic a hefty package of songs. This means that eMusic’s all ready sizable catalogue of 4,500,000+ tracks will expand by an additional 200,000 on July 1st of this year.
Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean that you will have access to the latest Pearl Jam or Modest Mouse; however you’ll be able to download any music released two years ago and beyond. Naturally, this comes with consequences for subscribers, although not too unreasonable. The price will remain the same but the amount of downloads will decrease from 30 for the eMusic basic plan to 24 –- and this continues throughout every tier.
Some will balk at Sony’s unprecedented venture due to the appeal of eMusic’s alliance with the indie crowd, but as more bands are picked up by the majors, it will become essential to keep up to date with their releases. One can surmise that the two year restriction will eventually be dropped when Sony realizes that it will only curb file sharing and not eradicate it altogether.
Everyone who is pissed off has a right to be. This a major change, and one that is mandatory. I loved experimenting with smaller indie bands and of course filling up on some of the more established acts like the Black Keys, Metric, etc. After filing through the new sony catalog I ran out of albums that I actually want rather quickly. Their back catalog is not as dense as they would lead you to believe. at least that is what I have seen so far.
The problem here is that alongside cutting downloads they cut back on features like re-downloading tracks that were already purchased. this is a big hit, in my eyes this differentiated emusic from Itunes. It also shows a new lack of trust in the users. Perhaps Sony twisted their arm on this one? Also the new 12 credit rule was completely misrepresented. albums that only have a handful of tracks are now going for 12 credits. In essence they created another way for the user to get less value form an already more expensive per track cost. Although I can see why it isn’t fair to classical music. Some pop punk wannabe can get more than them simply because they have 15 short mediocre tracks. while a classical album may only have four lengthy pieces. not exactly fair on the old per track pricing. Lets be honest about that. what is great for the user is not always so great for the bands and labels.
I am very disappointed because once I download the cracks in my collection, there will be little reason to stay on. It will make downloading small bands too pricey. especially if it turns out to be a band that I don’t end up liking. They essentially turned the once very casual site into a game of russian roulette. Each credit suddenly became very important, especially since many albums need to be downloaded as a whole. credits will be eaten up rapidly.
I’ll stay on and see if i adjust to the new site. No need to huff and puff all around the internet making threats. In the end none of us really know what happened behind Emusic’s doors. We are just speculating. Maybe, just maybe these changes were really necessary for the site to remain competitive and viable.
I was screwed by emusic as well. I’ve been a loyal customer for years, and my current plan is 200 songs a month for $49.99. On July 1st, my new plan is 100 songs a month for $40.99. Same price? Yea right. Good-bye emusic! I’d rather listen to free music here http://tinyurl.com/pc2atu
Well, it probably depends on the plan you had.
Hey folks, a heads up that the Emusic price point was NOT kept the same for loyal subscribers.
I was (repeat, WAS) a member of Emusic–until this debacle–since 2002. In a flash, with no personal notice, I was taken from 100 downloads a month for $24.99 to 40 downloads a month for $19.99. They also cut some other member benefits.
For a two-year-old Sony back catalog, when I’m there for independent music? No thank you! Please.
The price increase is only for new subscribers. If you had a subscription before, your payment plan remains the same (same price and same downloads). This is what they told me:
“As a loyal eMusic member, you’ve been grandfathered into your current Basic monthly plan and will continue to get 30 downloads every 30 days for $11.99. Your plan gives you 25% more downloads than new Basic monthly subscribers. It’s our way of saying thanks for being an eMusic member!”
The price will remain the same but the amount of downloads will decrease from $30 for the eMusic basic plan to $24 –- and this continues throughout every tier.
Sorry but this is so daft it deserves to be called out again. The price is based on number of tracks, if you reduce the number of tracks the price went up, regardless of what it says on the Credit Card statement. Are people really that unconscious that they don’t realize this?
How can a price remain the same when you are getting less for your money? How stupid do you think eMusic users are? We’re now paying more per track - the price isn’t the same.
“As more bands are picked up by the majors”… We must not live in the same world! What majors have been doing for the past five years is a) to hand back dozens and dozens of artists’ contracts around the world; and b) sign less and less new acts.
Bless all the indie labels that have continued to express faith in new music and new acts, most of which are available on eMusic.
What is true though (and quite unpleasant news for eMusic addicts) is that Sony managed to get eMusic to cave in and change their pricing structure.
Emmanuel Legrand
Editor - Impact
The new issue of Impact is now available on the MPA’s web site:
http://www.mpaonline.org.uk/Publications/iMPAct_Magazine/index.html