The future Mark describes sounds pretty likely to me. The music is free, and DRM is dead, so where do the big labels plan on making money? Concerts? Merchandise? Casual music consumers don't go for that sort of stuff. Like I said at mesh, I'm only a die-hard fan of a few artists, and I don't believe that a few die-hard fans of each artist is going to support the industry as it is.
mathewi True enough, Chris. I think that's why the industry is so enamored with the gigantic blockbuster acts like Hannah Montana, and also the "360 degree" deals that give them a stake in everything an artist does.
I'll put my sports blogger hat on for a minute and say that I've visited ArmchairGM before, but it was a while back when the look and feel of the site was uninviting, so I didn't go back until just now, and it seems to have improved some. It's been around a while, though.
with the gigantic blockbuster acts like Hannah Montana, and also the
"360 degree" deals that give them a stake in everything an artist
does.