Clay Aiken News Network

Clay Aiken – Universal and Decca are Leading The Way

By musicfan123 · Comments (6)

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

Since Clay Aiken signed with Decca Records, a part of the Universal Music Group, I have been interested in how they approach the ever-changing music recording business. It seem that UMG, the largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, is not afraid to try new and innovative ways to be the leader in the recording industry.

Universal Music Group recently unveiled a plan to test CD sales at $10 or less per unit. It’s a price that music fans have been demanding for years. Naming the program “Velocity,” UMG hopes that consumers will go out and buy CDs.

CD sales have fallen off in recent years while digital downloads have seen significant growth. The music site, Ars Technica projects that digital music sales will pass that of CDs by mid-to-late 2010.

Universal Music Group is taking steps to bolster their flagging CD sales. They are reducing the price per album, so that consumers will be spending anywhere between six and 10 dollars — a figure that is more competitive with digital services like iTunes.

The decision is a gamble for UMG: the price change lowers the company’s profit margin by shifting the wholesale price from $10.35 to about $7.50. Rolling Stone reports UMG is betting on increased sales volume to make the change profitable.

Jim Urie, Universal Music Group Distribution Chairman/CEO said:

“We think it will really bring new life into the physical format.”

The response to this new plan is mixed. There are many people who are excited to see lower physical CD prices. Lee Simmons from the internet site, Bizmology says that since it costs just pennies to manufacture a single CD, it is about time to see the lower price.

For some reason, the other major labels seem hesitant to try the new pricing. Simmons states that some of the label execs are even annoyed with the idea. However, they have not come up with another idea for stopping the decline in CD sales.

Will the lower price of a physical album entice consumers to purchase? It worked for retailer Trans World Entertainment, which saw sales jump 100 percent during a $9.99 test plan that partnered with Sony, UMG and EMI. With music sales already down 15.4 percent from just last year, success for UMG could signal a broader change from the other major labels

According to an industry observer at Billboard:

“The definition of idiocy is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. Things are not going to get better for CD sales unless the price point is addressed. One thing that the Trans World test shows for sure, $10 will drive sales and traffic.”

If the price of CDs is lowered by all the labels, I might be visiting the CD section of stores more often. It is such a good feeling to walk out of the store with a brand new CD in your hands. It feels good to slip it into the console of the car and listen as you drive home. Now, if they can only come up with an easier way to open the CD case!!

Comments (6)

Categories : Editorial

Tags : Billboard, Clay Aiken, Decca Records, EMI, Jim Urie, Lee Simmons, Sony, Trans World Entertainment, Universal Music Group

Clay Aiken – Try Echospin

By musicfan123 · Comments (19)

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

Universal Music Group has a plan to provide unique digital solutions that help record labels and artists easily sell and promote content directly to fans. Their distribution group has just signed with Echospin for direct-to-fan sales and promotions from their artist websites. The two companies say it’s the first time that a major music company has empowered its entire roster of artists to sell digital, physical and mobile goods from a single location. The announcement was made on August 25, by Jim Urie, President & CEO of UMGD, and Jon Lowy and Damian Manning, Co-Founders of Echospin.

PRNewswire reported on August 25, 2009 that Echospin, founded in 2003, is a technology company whose pioneering solutions enable entertainment companies to sell and promote digital, physical and mobile goods directly to fans. Echospin’s partners include Universal Music Group, Atlantic Records, Epic Records, Razor & Tie Entertainment, National Geographic, and many others.

According to Jim Urie:

“Echospin has created a market leading commerce and media delivery platform that facilitates the sale and promotion of digital, physical and mobile products all in one shot. It will provide our artists with unmatched opportunity and reach in the marketplace. As UMGD continues to expand and lead the industry in direct-to-fan initiatives, this agreement with Echospin will provide our artists and labels with more flexibility on how they distribute their music, while providing fans much easier access to a broad variety of content from the artists they are passionate about.”

“UMGD is committed to building closer relationships between artists and their fans. We’re thrilled they chose Echospin to be their partner in this unique opportunity,” commented Mr. Lowy.

“It’s exciting to see the world’s leading artists using our solutions to provide fans with the effortless and rewarding experiences they deserve,” added Mr. Manning.

One example of the new platform is the 3 Doors Down “Ultimate Fan Pack,” an Echospin-powered exclusive offer, which includes re-mastered CDs, a re-mastered vinyl LP, a poster, a special autographed “early entry pass,” T-shirt and an instant download of the re-mastered “Kryptonite” MP3 single.

This partnership between UMGD and Echospin is another example of how Universal Music is trying to keep in tune with the ever-changing music world.

Personally, I look forward to an Ultimate Fan Pack for Clay Aiken. Do you think we will get one with the new album?

Comments (19)

Categories : Editorial

Tags : 3 Doors Down, Clay Aiken, Damian Manning, Echospin, Jim Urie, Jon Lowy, Universal Music Group

Clay Aiken and BigChampagne

By musicfan123 · Comments (29)

Wednesday, August 19th, 2009

On August 18^th, Universal Music Group entered into a long-term music monitoring and information deal with BigChampagne, the leading online music measurement company for North America. BigChampagne will provide Universal with analysis of songs and listening patterns from music fans on social networks and online music services.

“As we continue to expand our services to our artists and partner labels, it’s important to utilize the best research tools available especially when it comes to the proliferation of music discovery and consumption on the web,” stated Jim Urie, President & CEO of Universal Music Group Distribution. “And with the addition of BigChampagne, we provide a comprehensive view of the marketplace, from the radio, online, and retail perspectives, all of which results in more opportunities for our artists and labels.”

By embracing a Web intelligence product, Universal is indicating how important the Internet has become to the music business. It is also a sign to Nielsen’s media measuring company that Universal is not satisfied that they are equipped to provide all the information they need, especially when it comes to the internet.

Soundscan has been the leader in counting music purchases in the United States since 1992. The Billboard charts rely on Soundscan for the calculations. Exact numbers are not available, but it is estimated that Universal paid between 7 million and 8 million a year to Soundscan for their data.

Eric Garland is the CEO of BigChampagne. He said when his company started, people didn’t think there would ever be any company willing to spend money on internet-music listeners. But, today, it is very important.

CNet spoke to Garland who said:

“The Internet has inherited the music business, When you look at MySpace plays, Rhapsody, iTunes, Last.fm, all of that dwarfs traditional music purchasing. Instead of CDs, we paid attention to this sleepy little Internet thing, but it happened when no one was watching. Well, we were watching.”

Last week, BigChampagne rolled out BC Dash, a new browser-based tracking system that allows a user to monitor in real-time song sales or streams at a number of websites, offline locations and peer-to-peer networks. Some of the sources include iTunes, YouTube, MySpace, retail brick-and-mortar record stores and Limewire. They hope that this improvement will give Universal the kind of intelligence that guides strategy.

So, bottom line……..what will BigChampagne do for Universal? In easy terms, the company will collect information about how and where people enjoy popular music and then analyze the information to tell them what titles are most popular, who is interested and why.

The on-line world of music is ever-changing and developing. It is good to see that Universal Music Group is forward looking and continuing to add partners to help them do an even better job for their artists.

It seems that Clay Aiken is in good hands. It will be interesting to see how Decca uses all these new ideas as they work with Clay in the next few months.

Comments (29)

Categories : Editorial

Tags : BigChampagne, Clay Aiken, Eric Garland, Jim Urie, SoundScan, Universal Music Group

Clay Aiken – The Fit Is Right

By musicfan123 · Comments (32)

Tuesday, August 11th, 2009

All of the Clay Nation has been celebrating the announcement that Clay Aiken has signed with Universal Music’s Decca Recordings. According to their site, the Universal Music Group is the world’s leading music company and has operations in 77 countries throughout the world. This is where Clay Aiken belongs.

If you are interested in reading an overview of the company or learn more about its history, you can read at the Home page for Universal Music Group or visit Clay, the Man. I am more interested in the future and what Decca will do to help Clay Aiken.

One of the biggest problems for all the major Music groups has to do with digital music distribution. In the past few years, the sale of CD’s has dropped significantly because people are downloading songs from the internet. Some still go to illegal sites to download for free, but most visit sites like I-Tunes, Rhapsody, Amazon, and Wal Mart to download their favorite songs. This practice has eaten into the profits of the music labels and they have been struggling to find a solution.

Universal Music Group Distribution is the sales and marketing division of Universal Music Group. On July 9^th, 2009, they entered into a strategic alliance with TuneCore, a leading digital music distribution company.

As part of this agreement, TuneCore will provide and host distribution sites for UMG’s labels as well as partner labels and artists. TuneCore allows artists to sell their music directly to fans through major on-line stores.

Jim Urie is the President and CEO of Universal Music Group Distribution. In July, he said the following about this new alliance:

“Our agreement with TuneCore highlights UMGD’s commitment to a strong sales philosophy and long-term artist development. UMGD is uniquely positioned to provide the most flexible and comprehensive digital and physical distribution, sales and marketing services in the industry, all of which results in more profitable opportunities for both our labels and our artists.”

“Honestly, Universal is one of the most forward thinking record labels on the planet,” commented Mr. Price who is the founder and CEO of TuneCore. “With this deal UMGD has truly changed the rules and the major label model by providing true choice for a musician.”

The following two paragraphs are from the Universal Music Group Website under news. Their explanation of the two companies is precise and easy to understand.

About Universal Music Group

Universal Music Group is the world’s leading music company with wholly owned record operations or licensees in 77 countries. Its businesses also include Universal Music Publishing Group, the industry’s leading global music publishing operation.

Universal Music Group\’s record labels include Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Disa, Emarcy, Fonovisa, Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Island Def Jam Music Group, Lost Highway Records, Machete Music, MCA Nashville, Mercury Nashville, Mercury Records, Philips, Polydor Records, Universal Motown Republic Group, Universal Music Latino, Universal Records South, and Verve Music Group as well as a multitude of record labels owned or distributed by its record company subsidiaries around the world. The Universal Music Group owns the most extensive catalog of music in the industry, which includes the last 100 years of the world\’s most popular artists and their recordings. UMG\’s catalog is marketed through two distinct divisions, Universal Music Enterprises (in the U.S.) and Universal Strategic Marketing (outside the U.S.). Universal Music Group also includes eLabs, its new media and technologies division; Bravado, its merchandising company; Twenty-First Artists, its full service management division; and Helter Skelter, its live music agency.

Universal Music Group is a unit of Vivendi, a global media and communications company.

About TuneCore

TuneCore is a low, flat fee service that distributes music to iTunes, eMusic, Rhapsody and many other major download and streaming sites while taking no rights and no revenue from the sale of the music. Artists are building careers, selling significant volumes of music and generating revenue through TuneCore. Since its launch in 2006, TuneCore has distributed tens of thousands of albums and millions of songs to iTunes and other digital stores by Grammy winners and unsigned artists alike. TuneCore artists include Drake, Beck, Jay-Z, Aretha Franklin, Keith Richards, Public Enemy, Nine Inch Nails, Ricky Skaggs, Paul Westerberg, MGM Studios, Warren G, Bjork, Moby, High School Musical cast members, Ali Lohan, Cirque Du Soleil, Starbucks and tens of thousands more. TuneCore currently distributes between 150 – 250 release a day (more music is released in one day via TuneCore than any major record label over a year) and recently expanded its offering to distribute full-length films, TV shows, live concerts, documentaries etc to iTunes and more.

Deals like this show that UMG is looking to the future and ready to support their artists in many ways. That sounds like the kind of company that is a good fit for Clay Aiken.

Comments (32)

Categories : Clay News

Tags : Clay Aiken, Decca Records, Jeff Price, Jim Urie, TuneCore, Universal Music Group