unique said:

MikeyB71 said:

It has been bollocks all day, i went out for some copies early this morning.

Guy told me to drop in tomorrow to pick up the unsold copies........i will be able to open a 20TEN shop at this rate.

what's the point of buying 15 copies today though after you already had it? i got about 10+ copies of PE from the MOS and then about 20 million copies from the o2 shows and i think in 3 years i might have gave away one copy. everyone i know has at least 34 copies of it. right now i have a small pile of copies and i'll get more tomorrow, and expect about 17 people at work to give me a copy and ask if i knew about it, even though i spent more of last week with people asking me about it and me showing them i had it on my iphone already. i've got multiple copies of most prince albums, for no real reason as i normally use cdr backup copies when i dj at prince nites so i don't scratch them (in a non dj type way of scratching). i don't have a fleabay account and can't be arsed sending anything in the post. one day i'll be an old dude with piles of fucking prince cds lying around the living room instead of piles of newspapers

I still have about ten shrink wrapped copies of Musicology on the shelf from that tour. However, if enterprising Europeans were to snatch up those extra copies and put them on ebay quickly they could probably make some nice extra cash. Seeing as how we can't buy the dang thing in the States.

Cerebus said:

unique said:

what's the point of buying 15 copies today though after you already had it? i got about 10+ copies of PE from the MOS and then about 20 million copies from the o2 shows and i think in 3 years i might have gave away one copy. everyone i know has at least 34 copies of it. right now i have a small pile of copies and i'll get more tomorrow, and expect about 17 people at work to give me a copy and ask if i knew about it, even though i spent more of last week with people asking me about it and me showing them i had it on my iphone already. i've got multiple copies of most prince albums, for no real reason as i normally use cdr backup copies when i dj at prince nites so i don't scratch them (in a non dj type way of scratching). i don't have a fleabay account and can't be arsed sending anything in the post. one day i'll be an old dude with piles of fucking prince cds lying around the living room instead of piles of newspapers

I still have about ten shrink wrapped copies of Musicology on the shelf from that tour. However, if enterprising Europeans were to snatch up those extra copies and put them on ebay quickly they could probably make some nice extra cash. Seeing as how we can't buy the dang thing in the States.

i still have a pile of shrinkwrapped copies of musicology too. i've probably got more shrinkwrapped copies of prince cds than a normal person has any cds at all

unique said:

MikeyB71 said:

It has been bollocks all day, i went out for some copies early this morning.

Guy told me to drop in tomorrow to pick up the unsold copies........i will be able to open a 20TEN shop at this rate.

what's the point of buying 15 copies today though after you already had it? i got about 10+ copies of PE from the MOS and then about 20 million copies from the o2 shows and i think in 3 years i might have gave away one copy. everyone i know has at least 34 copies of it. right now i have a small pile of copies and i'll get more tomorrow, and expect about 17 people at work to give me a copy and ask if i knew about it, even though i spent more of last week with people asking me about it and me showing them i had it on my iphone already. i've got multiple copies of most prince albums, for no real reason as i normally use cdr backup copies when i dj at prince nites so i don't scratch them (in a non dj type way of scratching). i don't have a fleabay account and can't be arsed sending anything in the post. one day i'll be an old dude with piles of fucking prince cds lying around the living room instead of piles of newspapers

I only bought 5, and that was to send overseas. Then i got an onslaught of them as gifts.....ahem.

[Edited 7/10/10 14:30pm]

if the internet is "over" ... then how am i listening to the new album right now??

musichead said:

if the internet is "over" ... then how am i listening to the new album right now??

[img:$uid]http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n276/squirrelgrease/Temporary-3/Obiwankenobi.jpg[/img:$uid]

"You are not listening to the new album."

Does Prince owe any of us any kind of explanation? No.

[Edited 7/11/10 16:34pm]

i been thinking, i really like this new method of Prince, via newspapers with him being paid up front.

its a win win situation for everyone.

he gets paid, the newspaper makes profit, the idiots who read that crap at least get some decent music

and we get to download it for free without having to listen to Prince bitch about it, cuz he already got his money

he's right where he belongs with the tabloids, the readers are right where they belong, and we're right here, where we belong

everybody's happy

still loving the album btw

although this way of releasing is good for Prince and it's good for us price wise, he still doesn't have to rely on a quality product selling itself, almost as if he doesn't think it will sell outside of us fans, like it's not good enough to be released with everybody elses product. So far i like what he has released this way, but it does make you wonder why he's done it this way, i suppose he doesn't have to share royalties and every penny is his. i would be nice to have a conventional release that's good with a radio single and all but hey. just a thought.

violetblues said:

babynoz said:

I think the method serves his purposes of getting paid up front and not having to put much money, time or effort into promotion. Whether that is an incentive to release quality music is debatable. By this method, he can pretty much throw anything together and release it with miminal risk. The papers will give it favorable reviews because it's linked to their publication.

Since he knows the album will get leaked/shared, this way he need not be too concerned about it. This way, he gets the $ while everyone else involved assumes the risk and responsibility of getting the music promoted and distributed.

It makes me question how successfully it would have sold by more conventional means.

I completely agree.

I think he outsmarted the system actually, as we have seen today the internet is dead as a marketplace for music. I mean to "sell" music

Prince was paid in advance in advance as he probably knew today's inevitable would happen.

Apple uses itunes as a loss leader to sell hawk their products, and most artists are not completely happy with itunes compensation, and most people find it too easy not to get it free instead.

I think Prince did the right thing, and this was a win win situation for everybody all around.

It turned out he is not "that" crazy after all.

Co-sign Win-Win situation for everyone and if you do not like it you can always back away from this artist and move on.

Getting print newspapers to distribute CDs? Absolute genius. A system with SO MUCH longevity.

By the way. What do these following things have in common?

• The panda
• The tiger
• the white rhinoceros
• the manatee
• people who can remember World War One
• the print newspaper
• the compact disc

It really is win / win!

And if ever you need to buy 20Ten as a present for someone, or if you lose your CD, or you need another copy for any reason at all... of course, Prince is planning to re-release the CD once a year, on 20Ten day, in a different newspaper.

This CD isn't an album. It's promotional material for Prince's bank account.

Splanknasty said:

Getting print newspapers to distribute CDs? Absolute genius. A system with SO MUCH longevity.

By the way. What do these following things have in common?

• The panda
• The tiger
• the white rhinoceros
• the manatee
• people who can remember World War One
• the print newspaper
• the compact disc

It really is win / win!

And if ever you need to buy 20Ten as a present for someone, or if you lose your CD, or you need another copy for any reason at all... of course, Prince is planning to re-release the CD once a year, on 20Ten day, in a different newspaper.

This CD isn't an album. It's promotional material for Prince's bank account.

Uh, they're all almost extinct?

Splanknasty said:

Getting print newspapers to distribute CDs? Absolute genius. A system with SO MUCH longevity.

By the way. What do these following things have in common?

• The panda
• The tiger
• the white rhinoceros
• the manatee
• people who can remember World War One
• the print newspaper
• the compact disc

It really is win / win!

And if ever you need to buy 20Ten as a present for someone, or if you lose your CD, or you need another copy for any reason at all... of course, Prince is planning to re-release the CD once a year, on 20Ten day, in a different newspaper.

This CD isn't an album. It's promotional material for Prince's bank account.

Of course it's meant for his bank account, all work is inherently meant as income.

I think you fail to understand the significance of what he has done, its both quite obvious and at the same time genius. I think Prince has found the magic formula for music in the internet age and people are incredible foolish to dismiss it,....which I myself initially did.

Think about this, but substitute any other vehicle as the method of distribution.

1. The artist creates his work and is offered for sale to a second party as promotional material only.

2. The second party can use the work for the promotion of their product, site, whatever, limited only by your imagination. Newspaper promotion in this instance, but does not own the artwork outright , is just given limited permission as promotional material.

3. THIS IS THE CRUTIAL PART- The artist must be paid in advance! Otherwise it will be all over the internet in seconds and all chances of financial gain quickly disappear. As we saw here last week, just about everybody and their mother had listened to the new Prince release TWO DAYS BEFORE ITS ACTUAL RELEASE.

Now when i hear Prince talk about an Itunes advance, it makes total sense. I now believe It would be insane not to demand it.

The internet as the sole distribution format without a second party or a the sole product not intended as a promotional device for a concert series etc is completely dead as a viable music distribution format for monetary gain.

I mock my man Prince on many occasion, but he is right on the money on this matter and only a matter of minutes before it finally dawns on people.

Now if he really wanted to make money on the internet, it has to be non-downloadable products and he is sitting on a mostly untapped and unlimited source of income in with his name brand in the classic form of music memorabilia, from limited edition everything to t-shirts, cups, posters etc. etc. I believe its time for Prince to join the Beatles and most rock icons that make substantial amout of money on that.

[Edited 7/12/10 14:24pm]

I just noticed that every song on the album is now on Youtube.

Interesting quote I found by Prince regarding the release of the album in newspapers, "Prince stated to the Mirror that this method of releasing the album was 'the best way to go... no charts, no internet piracy and no stress.'"

Yeah, about that. Not so much.

Unless of course he means that since it's not for sale, that people trading it on the web won't mean anything because it's no money lost.

ernestsewell said:

Interesting quote I found by Prince regarding the release of the album in newspapers, "Prince stated to the Mirror that this method of releasing the album was 'the best way to go... no charts, no internet piracy and no stress.'"

Yeah, about that. Not so much.

Unless of course he means that since it's not for sale, that people trading it on the web won't mean anything because it's no money lost.

Interesting. Of course, it also means that it doesn't allow fans who hear how good it is via word of mouth to go out and buy it. Purchasing the thing second hand isn't putting money in his pockets, or the publishers.

ernestsewell said:

Interesting quote I found by Prince regarding the release of the album in newspapers, "Prince stated to the Mirror that this method of releasing the album was 'the best way to go... no charts, no internet piracy and no stress.'"

Yeah, about that. Not so much.

Unless of course he means that since it's not for sale, that people trading it on the web won't mean anything because it's no money lost.

so if he's PAID he doesnt care about internet piracy any more?

wow. just wow.

robinhood said:

ernestsewell said:

Interesting quote I found by Prince regarding the release of the album in newspapers, "Prince stated to the Mirror that this method of releasing the album was 'the best way to go... no charts, no internet piracy and no stress.'"

Yeah, about that. Not so much.

Unless of course he means that since it's not for sale, that people trading it on the web won't mean anything because it's no money lost.

so if he's PAID he doesnt care about internet piracy any more?

wow. just wow.

generally most people who are concerned about piracy are concerned about the loss of revenue from it. with 20ten he gets paid upfront from the newspapers, a lump sum regardless of how many copies are sold. he's made his money, he doesn't lose a penny if people then download it for free. the newspapers may lose some income, but in real terms at 65p a go, few people are going to download it instead of buying it if the newspaper is available in their country. for people outwith countries where the cd is given away, the newspapers aren't really losing out by downloads as it's not a market the aim for. the downloads may potentially harm future sales if the cd is released officially via warners or another label in the states or other countries, but i would have thought the very open and publisised free release of the album with newspapers in those countries would affect sales far more than piracy, far moreso than planet earth which was only available in the UK with a newspaper

doing some kind of deal with starbucks to sell the cd at $5 in the same slipcase would probably be a better idea, unless he can do a deal with another magazine in the states and canada. i'm not sure if cd giveaways are as popular in the states as over here

what's interesting is that at a tv show just over 10 years ago i suggested to prince that he did a magazine with a cd on the cover to release the music from the vaults. a few months later npgmc started and did a similar thing online, and a few years later he is doing pretty much what i suggested. coincidence perhaps, or did i plant a seed? i was certainly remembered by prince and the band when i visited paisley a few months later, and a few minutes after stepping foot in paisley, just after i spoke to morris hayes, prince came into the npgmc room with a video tape of the previous days tv show i was also at, and put it on the video screens (he literally walked down with the tape in his hand and put it in the player) and we were both watching the show on the screens that we were at a few months earlier, standing just a couple of meters apart and i don't think anyone else noticed prince was in the room

unique said:

robinhood said:

so if he's PAID he doesnt care about internet piracy any more?

wow. just wow.

generally most people who are concerned about piracy are concerned about the loss of revenue from it. with 20ten he gets paid upfront from the newspapers, a lump sum regardless of how many copies are sold. he's made his money, he doesn't lose a penny if people then download it for free. the newspapers may lose some income, but in real terms at 65p a go, few people are going to download it instead of buying it if the newspaper is available in their country. for people outwith countries where the cd is given away, the newspapers aren't really losing out by downloads as it's not a market the aim for. the downloads may potentially harm future sales if the cd is released officially via warners or another label in the states or other countries, but i would have thought the very open and publisised free release of the album with newspapers in those countries would affect sales far more than piracy, far moreso than planet earth which was only available in the UK with a newspaper

doing some kind of deal with starbucks to sell the cd at $5 in the same slipcase would probably be a better idea, unless he can do a deal with another magazine in the states and canada. i'm not sure if cd giveaways are as popular in the states as over here

what's interesting is that at a tv show just over 10 years ago i suggested to prince that he did a magazine with a cd on the cover to release the music from the vaults. a few months later npgmc started and did a similar thing online, and a few years later he is doing pretty much what i suggested. coincidence perhaps, or did i plant a seed? i was certainly remembered by prince and the band when i visited paisley a few months later, and a few minutes after stepping foot in paisley, just after i spoke to morris hayes, prince came into the npgmc room with a video tape of the previous days tv show i was also at, and put it on the video screens (he literally walked down with the tape in his hand and put it in the player) and we were both watching the show on the screens that we were at a few months earlier, standing just a couple of meters apart and i don't think anyone else noticed prince was in the room

thanks for filling in the gaps for me. i think i understand this better now. the stance against piracy is more directly related to loss of revenue than the principle. got it.

sittin here thinking about this further, and how it releates to Prince's business decisions, i cant for the life of me understand how a multi-millionaire is concerned about loss of revenue.

seriously? has he been rich so long he doesnt even know how much money that is anymore? how many people in the world play the lottery just to get a whiff of the kind of dollars he's made. how many poor people, in civilized nations and the 3rd world, will NEVER see those figures EVER in their whole entire life!

and he's bitching? still? after 30 years of being mister big shot with EVERYTHING he could have EVER possibly wanted? money is absolutely NO object for him and he's still worried about someone ripping him off??

as long as he gets PAID he couldnt give a fuck what anyone does?

well fuck me into a milkshake. if he aint the biggest whiny ungrateful snot. ALL these years, i thought he was talking about THE PRINCIPLE, but no, its just been about the MONEY??

he needs to sit his azz down before the HOOD teaches him a lesson even the best blow-job in the UNIVERSE wont help him forget.

violetblues said:

Splanknasty said:

Getting print newspapers to distribute CDs? Absolute genius. A system with SO MUCH longevity.

By the way. What do these following things have in common?

• The panda
• The tiger
• the white rhinoceros
• the manatee
• people who can remember World War One
• the print newspaper
• the compact disc

It really is win / win!

And if ever you need to buy 20Ten as a present for someone, or if you lose your CD, or you need another copy for any reason at all... of course, Prince is planning to re-release the CD once a year, on 20Ten day, in a different newspaper.

This CD isn't an album. It's promotional material for Prince's bank account.

Of course it's meant for his bank account, all work is inherently meant as income.

I think you fail to understand the significance of what he has done, its both quite obvious and at the same time genius. I think Prince has found the magic formula for music in the internet age and people are incredible foolish to dismiss it,....which I myself initially did.

Think about this, but substitute any other vehicle as the method of distribution.

1. The artist creates his work and is offered for sale to a second party as promotional material only.

2. The second party can use the work for the promotion of their product, site, whatever, limited only by your imagination. Newspaper promotion in this instance, but does not own the artwork outright , is just given limited permission as promotional material.

3. THIS IS THE CRUTIAL PART- The artist must be paid in advance! Otherwise it will be all over the internet in seconds and all chances of financial gain quickly disappear. As we saw here last week, just about everybody and their mother had listened to the new Prince release TWO DAYS BEFORE ITS ACTUAL RELEASE.

Now when i hear Prince talk about an Itunes advance, it makes total sense. I now believe It would be insane not to demand it.

The internet as the sole distribution format without a second party or a the sole product not intended as a promotional device for a concert series etc is completely dead as a viable music distribution format for monetary gain.

I mock my man Prince on many occasion, but he is right on the money on this matter and only a matter of minutes before it finally dawns on people.

Now if he really wanted to make money on the internet, it has to be non-downloadable products and he is sitting on a mostly untapped and unlimited source of income in with his name brand in the classic form of music memorabilia, from limited edition everything to t-shirts, cups, posters etc. etc. I believe its time for Prince to join the Beatles and most rock icons that make substantial amout of money on that.

[Edited 7/12/10 14:24pm]

Firstly, and most importantly, here is something the kids know that Prince doesn't. The CD is dead. http://www.youtube.com/wa...8zE44mUBJU

Secondly, this is not an album for the ages. It's for one day. Good luck with buying it in six months time. You're not going to be able to buy this album in six days, let alone six years.

In other words: newspaper distribution is retarded. It has nothing to do with distributing work to fans and people who like music. It is the triumph of a greedy man's desire to be paid over the romance and generosity of music. "I get an advance? Cool. Then the music can disappear for all I fucking care."

Don't believe me? Tell me where you're going to be able to buy this music in a year. When you lose you copy. When you want to give it as a present.

Applaud that if you like. To me, it's just the final flag going up that says "This man cares more about his bank balance than he does his music." I can't respect that. You call that "genius" but to me it just says "Sell out."

Secondly, it's on a CD. It is going to be ripped. It is digital music. If it was distributed digitally people could still buy it. The CD's a dying format. Even the kids know this.

If you think this a model that can be repeated, you're simply wrong.

robinhood said:

thanks for filling in the gaps for me. i think i understand this better now. the stance against piracy is more directly related to loss of revenue than the principle. got it.

sittin here thinking about this further, and how it releates to Prince's business decisions, i cant for the life of me understand how a multi-millionaire is concerned about loss of revenue.

seriously? has he been rich so long he doesnt even know how much money that is anymore? how many people in the world play the lottery just to get a whiff of the kind of dollars he's made. how many poor people, in civilized nations and the 3rd world, will NEVER see those figures EVER in their whole entire life!

and he's bitching? still? after 30 years of being mister big shot with EVERYTHING he could have EVER possibly wanted? money is absolutely NO object for him and he's still worried about someone ripping him off??

as long as he gets PAID he couldnt give a fuck what anyone does?

well fuck me into a milkshake. if he aint the biggest whiny ungrateful snot. ALL these years, i thought he was talking about THE PRINCIPLE, but no, its just been about the MONEY??

he needs to sit his azz down before the HOOD teaches him a lesson even the best blow-job in the UNIVERSE wont help him forget.

i think the principle is part of it, because he worked to hone his talent and write songs etc etc etc, and why should other people make money from his work. of course that can be hard to understand for most people who have a normal paid job with an employer telling them what to do, and they don't get paid in perpetuity for their work

but regarding the money, his income stream will have changed a lot through the years. he no longer sells as many records as he did, so has to look at other areas to make money, such as live concerts. i'm not yet a millionaire myself, but i know that as i earn more money over the years i become accustomed to a certain lifestyle, as most people do, and you don't want to take a step down. the problem with being a pop star is that your whole life changes, so you can't just live in a normal hours without security etc, and for someone like prince, he can't just shop at target for clothes and pull off being prince. his studio also costs a lot of money to run. from what i understand, his royalties are eaten up by paisley park, so his day by day living needs an income such as cd sales and concerts. we've seen recently the stories about unpaid bills. surely if money was no concern the bills would be paid?

unique said:

i think the principle is part of it, because he worked to hone his talent and write songs etc etc etc, and why should other people make money from his work. of course that can be hard to understand for most people who have a normal paid job with an employer telling them what to do, and they don't get paid in perpetuity for their work

but regarding the money, his income stream will have changed a lot through the years. he no longer sells as many records as he did, so has to look at other areas to make money, such as live concerts. i'm not yet a millionaire myself, but i know that as i earn more money over the years i become accustomed to a certain lifestyle, as most people do, and you don't want to take a step down. the problem with being a pop star is that your whole life changes, so you can't just live in a normal hours without security etc, and for someone like prince, he can't just shop at target for clothes and pull off being prince. his studio also costs a lot of money to run. from what i understand, his royalties are eaten up by paisley park, so his day by day living needs an income such as cd sales and concerts. we've seen recently the stories about unpaid bills. surely if money was no concern the bills would be paid?

i dont know if he's paid his bills, but i dont see any reason why he couldnt.

i understand his chosen lifestyle is expensive, but i guess some people are prepared to go without a few of life's comforts to get bills paid, while others aren't.

he makes choices every day. expensive choices. if he cant pay his bills thats his own fault.

i know people who have hardly anything and they dont go driving round in limosines just to go to a nightclub and rent the penthouse suite wherever they go then complain they cant pay their bills.

they dont piss their hard-earned cash up against the wall on unnecessary extravagances then complain they cant pay bills.

they're not frivolous with their money. they're not stuck up either.

so many people all over the world have got next to nothing, literally. some dont have anything at all.

compared with how others live, and how so many dont even survive, i'd rather not hear any more of Prince's complaints.

he's been trippin on the same trip for 30 years. like we dont get it already.

does he sit there rocking back and forth repeating his money mantra's while he clings to his lifestyle as a matter of life or death?

the way he goes on about his 'entitlements', i wouldnt blame anyone for presuming he might.

"In man's decision 2 further separate from God, his re-creation of himself leaves him in a dysfunctional state of confusion. The mind becomes a burial ground 4 dead waste. Isolated from the wholeness of God, Earth and his fellow brothers and sisters, this man seeks solace in activities he thinks will stimulate his mind. He begins downloading in2 his brain a series of manmade creations designed 2 destroy it. All manmade creations originate from one of 2 sources: the Tree of Knowledge or the Tree of Life. One of these trees contained deadly fruit, the other - Fruit of Everlasting Life. The one who disregards this fact recreates himself and his kind in2 extinction."

PurpleLove7 said:

"leak" or not, I'm still gonna buy it on CD ... LoL

I'm cool with it being in the paper. Next time release a new album in the Star Tribune and smack CJ on the ass with it ... LoL

[Edited 7/8/10 22:07pm]

Same here, I will gladly buy this CD. If it was gonna be in a newspaper in NY, I'd want it to be in the NY Daily News, cause I get that at my door every morning.

I do think that there is a law of diminshing returns with this kind of a deal.

It's great as a one off, but can you do this with every release? The novelty has already diminshed, and although he got a lot of ink and publicity from the Mirror compared to the Mail on Sunday, there have also been a lot of "didn't he do this already?" and "if it's good, why is he reduced to gving it away?" comments.

And it kind of doesn't make sense in terms of promoting the European tour, as unless you were hardcore, why would you travel to Nice from the UK to see him on the back of the giveaway?

Prince as a brand rises in the short term but can only suffer in the long term, I think, especially amongst the mainstream. There would come a point where a new Prince Cd is met with shrugs rather than increases in paper sales, and the amount of upfront money will decrease each time. Although the %s are similar - roughly 27% - the Mail shifted a lot more papers than the Mirror. So when he's sat in the Sun's office trying to get $1million advance, they're gonna be sat there with a calculator working out that 20ten only brought in £211k of sales in last time, so can we call it £150k Prince? Of course advertising may have increased as well - wonder if they increased the fees to advertise for Saturday's Mirror? - but when you do the maths it isn't megabucks. And from Prince's point of view that advance will get salami sliced with each release.

The final comment I've got is that - yes I love 20ten - but I do feel it is a slice of vintage Prince, and that can be an acquired taste. I've listened to it countless times and it clicks for me - but would your average listener give it more than 1 spin? So the danger is that next time they go - Prince CD? No thanks, it's all weird keyboards and sesame street songs.

As a model, I kind of like what Paul McCartney did - re-release an existing album that had had its chart run via the papers - that way he's getting money as a bonus, not as an advance.

So in conclusion - a nice deal, a nice little earner, but not a viable new business model.

cosmicslop said:

I do think that there is a law of diminshing returns with this kind of a deal.

It's great as a one off, but can you do this with every release? The novelty has already diminshed, and although he got a lot of ink and publicity from the Mirror compared to the Mail on Sunday, there have also been a lot of "didn't he do this already?" and "if it's good, why is he reduced to gving it away?" comments.

And it kind of doesn't make sense in terms of promoting the European tour, as unless you were hardcore, why would you travel to Nice from the UK to see him on the back of the giveaway?

Prince as a brand rises in the short term but can only suffer in the long term, I think, especially amongst the mainstream. There would come a point where a new Prince Cd is met with shrugs rather than increases in paper sales, and the amount of upfront money will decrease each time. Although the %s are similar - roughly 27% - the Mail shifted a lot more papers than the Mirror. So when he's sat in the Sun's office trying to get $1million advance, they're gonna be sat there with a calculator working out that 20ten only brought in £211k of sales in last time, so can we call it £150k Prince? Of course advertising may have increased as well - wonder if they increased the fees to advertise for Saturday's Mirror? - but when you do the maths it isn't megabucks. And from Prince's point of view that advance will get salami sliced with each release.

The final comment I've got is that - yes I love 20ten - but I do feel it is a slice of vintage Prince, and that can be an acquired taste. I've listened to it countless times and it clicks for me - but would your average listener give it more than 1 spin? So the danger is that next time they go - Prince CD? No thanks, it's all weird keyboards and sesame street songs.

As a model, I kind of like what Paul McCartney did - re-release an existing album that had had its chart run via the papers - that way he's getting money as a bonus, not as an advance.

So in conclusion - a nice deal, a nice little earner, but not a viable new business model.

I was going to say something about diminishing returns yesterday too, i agree. If the product is seen as something substandard it will effect not just future projects but it also taints an artists reputation.

But i have no doubt in my mind that this will be THE model of mainstream distribution. Unless governments act to better protect intellectual property like music, which there doesn't seem be any major urgency by anyone other than artists and labels themselves, the future of the record non advertising supported releases in not viable. The age of the record label is over.

I have no doubt that artists will all have to swallow their pride and offer their music on all the online music outlets, but they will first have some sort of advertising sponsored "opening weekend" type event, online or on a magazine. A name artist will have a download page sponsored by Coke or Pepsi for new releases and merchandising and be ready to hit the road touring while the fire is hot. It will just be another aspect to what concert promoters already do.

Prince was able to get a Print advertising option this time only because the media is still alive and desperate, but the future is still adverting, weather Google Ads, or major corporate online sponsorship.

This is the way I remember getting mine, isn't this the way you guys got yours?

hollywooddove said:

This is the way I remember getting mine, isn't this the way you guys got yours?

You are awesome!

cosmicslop said:

I do think that there is a law of diminshing returns with this kind of a deal.

It's great as a one off, but can you do this with every release? The novelty has already diminshed, and although he got a lot of ink and publicity from the Mirror compared to the Mail on Sunday, there have also been a lot of "didn't he do this already?" and "if it's good, why is he reduced to gving it away?" comments.

And it kind of doesn't make sense in terms of promoting the European tour, as unless you were hardcore, why would you travel to Nice from the UK to see him on the back of the giveaway?

Prince as a brand rises in the short term but can only suffer in the long term, I think, especially amongst the mainstream. There would come a point where a new Prince Cd is met with shrugs rather than increases in paper sales, and the amount of upfront money will decrease each time. Although the %s are similar - roughly 27% - the Mail shifted a lot more papers than the Mirror. So when he's sat in the Sun's office trying to get $1million advance, they're gonna be sat there with a calculator working out that 20ten only brought in £211k of sales in last time, so can we call it £150k Prince? Of course advertising may have increased as well - wonder if they increased the fees to advertise for Saturday's Mirror? - but when you do the maths it isn't megabucks. And from Prince's point of view that advance will get salami sliced with each release.

The final comment I've got is that - yes I love 20ten - but I do feel it is a slice of vintage Prince, and that can be an acquired taste. I've listened to it countless times and it clicks for me - but would your average listener give it more than 1 spin? So the danger is that next time they go - Prince CD? No thanks, it's all weird keyboards and sesame street songs.

As a model, I kind of like what Paul McCartney did - re-release an existing album that had had its chart run via the papers - that way he's getting money as a bonus, not as an advance.

So in conclusion - a nice deal, a nice little earner, but not a viable new business model.

they don't just consider increased sales and profits for the one day, these things are intended as ongoing promotions, so people have greater brand awareness in the week or so up to the release, and after the release. the hope is that the increased sales on the day will turn into increased ongoing readership in that people buy the paper because of the cd but read the paper and like it and keep buying it, such as instead of the other paper they get. they stop buying the daily fail and buy the daily crap instead. that's the point of these promotions from the paper perspective. they don't give two shits about prince, they would give out swastikas if they thought it would increase sales

hollywooddove said:

This is the way I remember getting mine, isn't this the way you guys got yours?

I would have more respect for him releasing a CD inside a Watchtower. At least that would be promoting something he actually believes in.