[solaris]

Universal Music CEO Doug Morris Speaks:

As for his actual digital strategy, it's pretty much what we expected — Morris's singular goal these days is to limit the power of Steve Jobs and iTunes. He puts most of his energy into designing Universal's own Internet music store (Total Music, which is definitely doomed to fail), cutting deals with Apple competitor Microsoft for a piece of those massive Zune profits, and heroically doing all he can to make it even more difficult for consumers to justify paying for music online. But then he says something so ridiculous it sort of blows our minds.

When Morris is asked why the music business didn't work harder, in the early days of file-sharing, to build its own (legal) online presence, there's this exchange:

"There's no one in the record industry that's a technologist," Morris explains. "That's a misconception writers make all the time, that the record industry missed this. They didn't. They just didn't know what to do. It's like if you were suddenly asked to operate on your dog to remove his kidney. What would you do?"

Personally, I would hire a vet. But to Morris, even that wasn't an option. "We didn't know who to hire," he says, becoming more agitated. "I wouldn't be able to recognize a good technology person — anyone with a good bullshit story would have gotten past me."

Even though we shouldn't be, we're actually a little shocked. We'd always assumed the labels had met with a team of technology experts in the late nineties and ignored their advice, but it turns out they never even got that far — they didn't even try!

Full story here: Universal Music CEO Doug Morris Speaks, Recording Industry in Even Deeper Shit Than We Thought -- Vulture -- Entertainment & Culture Blog -- New York Magazine

[gluteus maximus]

Originally Posted by solaris

Universal Music CEO Doug Morris Speaks:
Full story here: Universal Music CEO Doug Morris Speaks, Recording Industry in Even Deeper Shit Than We Thought -- Vulture -- Entertainment & Culture Blog -- New York Magazine

ROFLMgmO

gm

[Dave C]

Excellent article (aswell as the two links contained within it). Solaris, I think you need to apply for the job of his 'PA' so that you can give him a few pointers of how to move forward,
Cheers,
Dave C
NB. GM, what the hell does ROFLMgmO mean. I entered it into Google and still don't know

[gluteus maximus]

Originally Posted by Dave C

Excellent article (aswell as the two links contained within it). Solaris, I think you need to apply for the job of his 'PA' so that you can give him a few pointers of how to move forward,
Cheers,
Dave C
NB. GM, what the hell does ROFLMgmO mean. I entered it into Google and still don't know

Hi Dave C

The gluteus maximus is the most superficial of the three muscles in the buttock, or, in layman's terms 'a bit of an arse'. (Can I say 'arse' here? I guess so, solaris said 'shit'.)

So ROFLMgmO =~ ROFLMAO http://www.auditmypc.com/acronym/ROFLMAO.asp



gm

[Dave C]

Originally Posted by gluteus maximus

Hi Dave C

The gluteus maximus is the most superficial of the three muscles in the buttock, or, in layman's terms 'a bit of an arse'. (Can I say 'arse' here? I guess so, solaris said 'shit'.)

So ROFLMgmO =~ ROFLMAO ROFLMAO - Rolling On Floor Laughing My A** Off



gm

I tried alot of combinations in my mind, but never thought of that one,
Cheers,
Dave C

[solaris]

Originally Posted by Dave C

Solaris, I think you need to apply for the job of his 'PA' so that you can give him a few pointers of how to move forward,
Cheers,
Dave C

I already did - he told me to bugger off

[solaris]

Originally Posted by gluteus maximus

Hi Dave C

The gluteus maximus is the most superficial of the three muscles in the buttock, or, in layman's terms 'a bit of an arse'. (Can I say 'arse' here? I guess so, solaris said 'shit'.)

So ROFLMgmO =~ ROFLMAO ROFLMAO - Rolling On Floor Laughing My A** Off



gm

Hi gm.

I thought gluteus maximus was a Roman emperor - I never even bothered to look it up

I guess it was the "Senatus Populus Que Romanus" that fooled me there

[gluteus maximus]

Originally Posted by solaris

Hi gm.

I thought gluteus maximus was a Roman emperor - I never even bothered to look it up

I guess it was the "Senatus Populus Que Romanus" that fooled me there

Hi solaris

ROFLMgmO AGAIN

gm

[squash54]

Originally Posted by solaris

Universal Music CEO Doug Morris Speaks:





Full story here: Universal Music CEO Doug Morris Speaks, Recording Industry in Even Deeper Shit Than We Thought -- Vulture -- Entertainment & Culture Blog -- New York Magazine

I recommend reading the Wired article linked to this story. In it the head of Universal Music, Doug Morris, reveals that his company's strategy to enter the digital sales business in competition to iTunes is a subscription service called Total Music. This would, ideally, be linked to the purchase of a device like a Zune so that if you bought a Zune you got, for example, a 6 months free subscription to Total Music i.e. the whole Universal catalogue.

Unfortunately Morris was not asked why they wouldn't just go with the Alltunes model rather than a subsription model, which is a big turn-off for a large proportion of digital music consumers.

Has anyone heard why none of the big four has bothered to embrace what is clearly the best way of doing this kind of business - namely, Alltunes? Once they give up DRM, which appears to be happening, there is no reason that I can see to establish these 'iTunes' or 'linked to a device' type models anyway.

Even if their prices were double those of Alltunes, my guess is the bulk of online purchasers (rightly or wrongly) would opt for this service, where there are no (real or assumed) copyright concerns, in preference to the Russian stores.

[Nightfly]

Originally Posted by squash54

I recommend reading the Wired article linked to this story. In it the head of Universal Music, Doug Morris, reveals that his company's strategy to enter the digital sales business in competition to iTunes is a subscription service called Total Music. This would, ideally, be linked to the purchase of a device like a Zune so that if you bought a Zune you got, for example, a 6 months free subscription to Total Music i.e. the whole Universal catalogue.

Unfortunately Morris was not asked why they wouldn't just go with the Alltunes model rather than a subsription model, which is a big turn-off for a large proportion of digital music consumers.

Has anyone heard why none of the big four has bothered to embrace what is clearly the best way of doing this kind of business - namely, Alltunes? Once they give up DRM, which appears to be happening, there is no reason that I can see to establish these 'iTunes' or 'linked to a device' type models anyway.

Even if their prices were double those of Alltunes, my guess is the bulk of online purchasers (rightly or wrongly) would opt for this service, where there are no (real or assumed) copyright concerns, in preference to the Russian stores.

It's obvious that these guys do not have a handle on this and never
did because they are losing money and customer in droves.

Their way of thinking is old and tired and they must make way
for some youthful thoughts and new directions and ideas.

Bob Dylan said it best:

The line it is drawn
The curse it is cast
The slow one now
Will later be fast
As the present now
Will later be past
The order is
Rapidly fadin'.
And the first one now
Will later be last
For the times they are a-changin'