Can you actually make money from online distribution?

[Anderton]

So...is it actually possible to make any money from online distribution?

[PeterTuneCore]

TuneCore has passed along sales of $4,000,000 all earned at a few pennies per track, to mostly unknowns. However, one thing is certain: all those bands that shared in that $4,000,000 worked very, very hard to promote themselves, even if that promotion never included airplay.

[sabriel9v]

How many accounts took share in that 4 million?

[PeterTuneCore]

How many accounts took share in that 4 million?

It varies, of course, and it's not an even distribution obviously, but it went over about 11,000 people.

That's about $365 to everyone, on average. TuneCore never took a penny of it, either--we don't take a back end.

I can't think of greater proof that you can, indeed make money with digital distribution.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[Poker99]

It varies, of course, and it's not an even distribution obviously, but it went over about 11,000 people.

That's about $365 to everyone, on average. TuneCore never took a penny of it, either--we don't take a back end.

I can't think of greater proof that you can, indeed make money with digital distribution.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

That's what I'm saying.

If you take out the minority who made a lot of money from it, the average $ earned would drop a lot. The minority who made a lot, probably had a success with radio or a nice promo that made people go to tunecore to get their albums.

365$ is kind of useless, don'T you think? Its better than nothing, but still, I don't see how we can take this model and have hope it will make the industry a more lucrative market for independant artists.

[sabriel9v]

That's what I'm saying.

If you take out the minority who made a lot of money from it, the average $ earned would drop a lot. The minority who made a lot, probably had a success with radio or a nice promo that made people go to tunecore to get their albums.

365$ is kind of useless, don'T you think? Its better than nothing, but still, I don't see how we can take this model and have hope it will make the industry a more lucrative market for independant artists.

$365 is not bad considering that little to no money was initially invested in setting up a tunecore account. I think the purpose of programs like Tunecore and CDbaby is that they can be used as stepping stones and not necessarily the end all be all for an artist's marketing and business scheme.

[smross]

That's what I'm saying.

If you take out the minority who made a lot of money from it, the average $ earned would drop a lot. The minority who made a lot, probably had a success with radio or a nice promo that made people go to tunecore to get their albums.

365$ is kind of useless, don'T you think? Its better than nothing, but still, I don't see how we can take this model and have hope it will make the industry a more lucrative market for independant artists.

Sabriel, I have to say I also don't agree with you here. In a situation like this where ever artist that signed up is factored into the average you can't take a low average to mean that the good artists aren't making money. Digital distribution is going to help out independent good artists that have a sellable product.

Of course there are still going to be certain types of promotion that indi artists don't have access to such as radio and tv. Even that is changing though with youtube and internet radio. You can't expect the generic market to change over night but it would be very difficult to argue that there isn't a very fast expanding new market with music and the internet.

Also, still waiting for my tunecore/cdbaby comparison :poke:;)

[sabriel9v]

Sabriel, I have to say I also don't agree with you here. In a situation like this where ever artist that signed up is factored into the average you can't take a low average to mean that the good artists aren't making money. Digital distribution is going to help out independent good artists that have a sellable product.

Of course there are still going to be certain types of promotion that indi artists don't have access to such as radio and tv. Even that is changing though with youtube and internet radio. You can't expect the generic market to change over night but it would be very difficult to argue that there isn't a very fast expanding new market with music and the internet.

Also, still waiting for my tunecore/cdbaby comparison :poke:;)

What's your point? I don't see it anywhere within that paragraph

[smross]

What's your point? I don't see it anywhere within that paragraph


Hey sorry sabriel, I was actually responding to poker99s post:freak:

[PeterTuneCore]

The question is, "can you actually make money from online distribution." The answer is a resounding "yes."

We have people pulling down TENS of THOUSANDS of dollars a MONTH. And I'm not talking about big-name acts. Know what does really, really well? Sound effects. Meditation music. Holiday music. We had a halloween album make so much money in September and October we send them a congratulation card. And "regular music" sells like crazy too: Kelly, who did "Shoes," is a top earner over and over again. There's Eric Hutchingson, Meiko, Catherine Freeney, the list goes on and on. These are all unknown, unsigned folks who are making a living through online digital sales.

I mention all this because I think it may be we're asking the wrong question. Digital distribution is just that--distribution. It has its costs and risks, but the content (music) gets to the consumer (fans). "Digital" is just a format, and digital distribution is just a novel way of passing it along. SOME percentage of your fans are going to prefer downloading the music, some will prefer a CD, some will want an 8-track tape! You can satisfy any market, it's all about costs and rewards, demand and what you choose to invest into creating a supply.

The real question is, "Can you actually make money from selling your music." Ever since publishers dropped 20 florins for the right to sell a Beethoven manuscript and printed it up to sell to the emerging European middle class, the answer has been YES.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[Anderton]

Know what does really, really well? Sound effects. Meditation music. Holiday music.

That never occurred to me but that's a fantastic tip!!! AFAIC that tip alone justifies this forum :) But you know, that makes a lot of sense. When SSS was on AOL and my sample library was online, the sounds that had the most downloads BY FAR were whale sounds I had recorded up in Alaska.

Peter, any more tips along the lines of "things online that are successful" would be welcome. Maybe it should have its own thread.

[PeterTuneCore]

That never occurred to me but that's a fantastic tip!!! AFAIC that tip alone justifies this forum :) But you know, that makes a lot of sense. When SSS was on AOL and my sample library was online, the sounds that had the most downloads BY FAR were whale sounds I had recorded up in Alaska.

Peter, any more tips along the lines of "things online that are successful" would be welcome. Maybe it should have its own thread.

Sure, give it its own thread! After two years of monitoring sales, I know what sells, intimately. :)

And sometimes it's tremendously counter-intuitive.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[Poker99]

What is the difference between TuneCore and say, CDBABY ?

[Anderton]

I think one difference is that CD Baby sells physical product, and TuneCore distributes online digital downloads only.

[sabriel9v]

Peter, considering TuneCore's close relationship with itunes, have you learned anything about the buying trends of itunes users?

[PeterTuneCore]

Peter, considering TuneCore's close relationship with itunes, have you learned anything about the buying trends of itunes users?

Another tough question! It's very hard to pick trends. Seasonal trends are easier: we can see what spikes when, and generally the buying patterns in general retail appear in digital music sales too.

One peculiarity was the big spike in sales in January and February. We figure it's people rushing over to iTunes to buy music to fill up the iPods, computers and other portable music players that they got as presents in December! But that's just a theory. :)

"Meme" things do very well: if a viral video is hot, its sound track on iTunes will sell like crazy. Even though you can hear it along with the short film or video on YouTube, people still buy it by the barrel in the stores. That's one reason why I urge everyone to make a kooky, low-budget video and put it up either on iTunes (through TuneCore) or on YouTube or its like. It really does fuel song sales.

It's still too early to tell, but I've seen a good rise in HipHop and Rap music sales. I think its audience is adapting very well to the new way of buying music.

More as I see it!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[PeterTuneCore]

What is the difference between TuneCore and say, CDBABY ?

I get this so much I think I'll stop fighting the tide and just give the short answer:

TuneCore is cheaper, faster (those two I can prove with numbers) and better (that's my opinion) and everyone at TuneCore donates all their income to saving starving puppies in Quebec (um...not really).

--Peter

[sabriel9v]

Another tough question! It's very hard to pick trends. Seasonal trends are easier: we can see what spikes when, and generally the buying patterns in general retail appear in digital music sales too.

One peculiarity was the big spike in sales in January and February. We figure it's people rushing over to iTunes to buy music to fill up the iPods, computers and other portable music players that they got as presents in December! But that's just a theory. :)

"Meme" things do very well: if a viral video is hot, its sound track on iTunes will sell like crazy. Even though you can hear it along with the short film or video on YouTube, people still buy it by the barrel in the stores. That's one reason why I urge everyone to make a kooky, low-budget video and put it up either on iTunes (through TuneCore) or on YouTube or its like. It really does fuel song sales.

It's still too early to tell, but I've seen a good rise in HipHop and Rap music sales. I think its audience is adapting very well to the new way of buying music.

More as I see it!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

In terms of what you said regarding viral video, it seems as if there's a direct reaction to a product being properly marketed online and then the artist encouraging fans to seek that material online.

[Datahead]

I get this so much I think I'll stop fighting the tide and just give the short answer:

TuneCore is cheaper, faster (those two I can prove with numbers) and better (that's my opinion) and everyone at TuneCore donates all their income to saving starving puppies in Quebec (um...not really).

--Peter

Good answer!!! I'd guess that question could become a little redundant... LOL Love the puppy part.

[leopardstar]

cool i just poped into this forum, and already can see it will be a awesome forum, plus i get to learn more about what i need to know about distribution. thanks peter. :~)

[PeterTuneCore]

cool i just poped into this forum, and already can see it will be a awesome forum, plus i get to learn more about what i need to know about distribution. thanks peter. :~)

My pleasure. Ask away!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[leopardstar]

could i get the link to your web page, or to where i could sign up my band?
thank you

[PeterTuneCore]

could i get the link to your web page, or to where i could sign up my band?
thank you

Sure! http://www.tunecore.com

Hop in, the water's fine!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[jrm27]

Peter, the band I'm in (see signature), has been using your service for some time now and we've been telling our friends about you. I just sent you an email regarding some questions I've had while reading this discussion. Thanks for making yourself available to us!

-jon
theRide

[PeterTuneCore]

My pleasure, Jon. And remember, we have a whole customer support department for questions. Write support@tunecore.com and they can help you with any specifics to your account or music.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[temnov]

Peter, it's good to see you here.

My question - should I register my songs with copyright.gov before putting them on tunecore or not?

Thanks,

PT

[PeterTuneCore]

Peter, it's good to see you here.

My question - should I register my songs with copyright.gov before putting them on tunecore or not?

Thanks,

PT

Glad to be here. HC's a lot of fun!

It's entirely up to you. You don't have to--music you write is already protected. But registering makes it much easier to defend against someone else stealing it, writing something very similar, etc. REMEMBER, I'M NOT A LAWYER, so for real advice on this, get the ear of a copyright lawyer.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[temnov]

Peter, thanks a lot. This is what I needed to know.

PT

[uzybear]

my opinion: the cost is way too high

ten cents a song, a buck an album, whatever bitrate mp3 or flac you want, no DRM, no fuss

this would decrease pirating, but would it make bands more money? eh....i'd like to think so, but, nah, probably not

[skempe]

tunecore has seemed like an unbelievable oppurtunity since i heard about it about a year ago. I've had my account for awhile, since I have been recording my EP. I've yet to release it on tunecore, just have been putting the other stuff together. I'm 16, making 375$ is PERFECTLY fine with me. tunecore's a great thing for the underdogs that are 1. jut getting started 2. need money to get started 3. suck at promoting and just use myspace, etc. It's an awesome way to get your name out to random people searching itunes for something fresh, and to get yourself on someones ipod so that they tell a friend at school or something, "listen to this i found on itunes." then that person goes home and buys it. my producer, who records his own music and has 2 solo albums on tunecore right now (Patrick Wood: "Running Past You"), and hes beend doing awesome. thing is, hes never done a show with his solo music and doesnt really promote it! still, people find it, purchase it, and enjoy it. I find this service one of the greatest things since music myspace, thanks peter!

[Dean Roddey]

ten cents a song, a buck an album, whatever bitrate mp3 or flac you want, no DRM, no fuss

this would decrease pirating, but would it make bands more money? eh....i'd like to think so, but, nah, probably not

No, it wouldn't really. Even if you sold half a million albums, something that would make you a pretty large selling band, you'd end up with a whole half million dollars if everyone bought the whole album. By the time you covered your general costs and expenses for that year, then split that up between say four or five band members, manager, roadies, and whoever else is required, you could do just as well or better working at Burger King, and having no health insurance or money in the bank to deal with an emergency and no savings for your old age. What kind of career is that?

If no one thinks your song is worth more than 10 cents, you probaby shouldn't be making music, IMO. At that price, I'd just get into the bubble gum business.

[PeterTuneCore]

tunecore has seemed like an unbelievable oppurtunity since i heard about it about a year ago. I've had my account for awhile, since I have been recording my EP. I've yet to release it on tunecore, just have been putting the other stuff together. I'm 16, making 375$ is PERFECTLY fine with me. tunecore's a great thing for the underdogs that are 1. jut getting started 2. need money to get started 3. suck at promoting and just use myspace, etc. It's an awesome way to get your name out to random people searching itunes for something fresh, and to get yourself on someones ipod so that they tell a friend at school or something, "listen to this i found on itunes." then that person goes home and buys it. my producer, who records his own music and has 2 solo albums on tunecore right now (Patrick Wood: "Running Past You"), and hes beend doing awesome. thing is, hes never done a show with his solo music and doesnt really promote it! still, people find it, purchase it, and enjoy it. I find this service one of the greatest things since music myspace, thanks peter!

Wow, thanks Skempe! You know, everyone talks about the "glut" of music, how impossible it is for someone who isn't already a household name to get noticed, etc. I cry BS, and stories like you, your friend Patrick, and the evidence of our own royalty system show otherwise. Our BIGGEST EARNERS are total unknowns, who never had a big marketing or promotion machine behind them. We're talking people who make tens of thousands of dollars every month!

I think we're all going to be surprised. Whole new ways of being "noticed" will arise, ways we couldn't even imagine today. It's exciting to be at the edge of the new frontier.

Thanks again for all the kind words. We really, really want to make a difference, especially for those who felt they'd never have a chance to reach the whole world.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[doug osborne]

my opinion: the cost is way too high

ten cents a song, a buck an album, whatever bitrate mp3 or flac you want, no DRM, no fuss

this would decrease pirating, but would it make bands more money? eh....i'd like to think so, but, nah, probably not

Absolutely - the artist would have a chance to earn much more than if they sold the equivalent amount while under a standard contract to a major label. An artist can't really make significant royalty income from a major label until their third or fourth album.

I'd put it at more like fifty cents per song.

[thefineline]

I'm curious what some users besides have to say about tune core in comparison with other comparable services, ie snocap (Not the best one, I'm sure, but the one that comes to mind.) No offense, Peter. I value your opinions just as much as anyone. It's just for this particular question I'd like to hear some opinions from other angles too.

[PeterTuneCore]

I'm curious what some users besides have to say about tune core in comparison with other comparable services, ie snocap (Not the best one, I'm sure, but the one that comes to mind.) No offense, Peter. I value your opinions just as much as anyone. It's just for this particular question I'd like to hear some opinions from other angles too.

No offense taken. We even have a testimonials page on our site, but as you can imagine, we only put up glowing endorsements. Then again, that's about all we get. I have to say, very VERY few people seem to have a problem with us. Maybe that's because the moment I or our Customer Support team hears about them, we rush in to try and help.

For the whole first year and a half of TuneCore, I was the sole customer support person. I can't STAND bad customer support, so I went a little crazy trying to please everyone. It's not possible, of course, but I think the spirit of the effort got through, and even folks who had a rough time at least understood it was the exception and a fluke. Our current CS team feels the same dedication.

I'd love to hear the results! But maybe it should be its own question/thread? Moderator?

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[BlueStrat]

Absolutely - the artist would have a chance to earn much more than if they sold the equivalent amount while under a standard contract to a major label. An artist can't really make significant royalty income from a major label until their third or fourth album.



Not necessarily so.

If the artist is also the songwriter, he's entitled to 9.1 cents a song per CD sold regardless of what he owed the record company and if he's smart, he had a lawyer who stipulated in the contract that writer's royalties are separate from sales profits and performance rights. In addition, he should also get a slice of publishing, at least 25-50%.

That would mean that if the artist sells 500,000 copies, he gets $45,500 per song on the CD, and depending on the publishing split, another $11,000 to $23,000 per song. If you write all 10 or 12 songs on a record, well...Cha ching! You could walk away with over 800k.

It isn't easy selling a half million records, but if you do, there can be some decent dough in it.

[guitar_god]

365$ is kind of useless, don'T you think? Its better than nothing, but still, I don't see how we can take this model and have hope it will make the industry a more lucrative market for independant artists.
Agree. How much have those artist spend on gear, promo, education, etc; not including the time they have spend learning how to play an instrument or sing? That's a lifetime job like any other profession, the problem is the industry, not the artist. :cop:

[pjrake]

my band just signed up with tunecore. although our music is not live yet on itunes (we also chose napster, amazon, and rhapsody), let me tell you that the experience so far has been great. excelent service, fast email response, and the website is very easy to upload music, make payments (via paypal), and simple to use!

in addition, they're running a deal on printing 100 CD's which we are placing an order this week. The price is better than discmakers (which we were going to use before we "discovered" tunecore).

we can't wait to have our stuff to sell. thanks tunecore!

-PJ

[PeterTuneCore]

my band just signed up with tunecore. although our music is not live yet on itunes (we also chose napster, amazon, and rhapsody), let me tell you that the experience so far has been great. excelent service, fast email response, and the website is very easy to upload music, make payments (via paypal), and simple to use!

in addition, they're running a deal on printing 100 CD's which we are placing an order this week. The price is better than discmakers (which we were going to use before we "discovered" tunecore).

we can't wait to have our stuff to sell. thanks tunecore!

-PJ

Thanks for the nice words! Never hesitate to reach out to us if you need anything.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[marcellis]

Anderton: So...is it actually possible to make any money from online distribution?

In my experience, no.

Of course, I've been going it alone. YMMV.

ASCAP has sent me a few pitifully small checks for UK radio airplay. But as far as music downloads goes? I haven't made a cent.

Of course, I give my music away for free on my websites.
So I should't expect to make money from downloads.

A composer can leverage online distribution into worldwide exposure, gigs and even publicity. Likewise, gigs, publicity can be leveraged into www-exposure. That all has a value. But thank God I have the luxury of a day job too.

On the + side my downloads the past two months are way up. One song, in particular, "Chaplin on the Subway" has been really strong. All of the downloads are from Europe too. France, Germany, Poland, Switzerland and Russia.

Some folks in those places can hear my music playing. But I never hear the ka-ching noise in my piggy-bank.

Don't know what's up with those downloads though. The referring ISP's never show up in my stats.
The downloading ISP shows up. But I don't know how the downloaders were referred to my site to download the songs.

[ultranet]

Know what does really, really well? Sound effects. Meditation music. Holiday music.

I was thinking something like this. Creating some New and Unique way of music. Btw what do you meant by Holiday music? Is there any samples that I can listen to?

Thanks for your time

[PeterTuneCore]

I was thinking something like this. Creating some New and Unique way of music. Btw what do you meant by Holiday music? Is there any samples that I can listen to?

Thanks for your time

Just think "Christmas music." Covers of "Rudolph" and such. Also, music with obvious Christmas in the name, like, "Blues Harmonica for Christmas" or "Twelve Silent Nights of Xylophone for the Season."

Yes, I'm making these titles up. :)

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[moskvariver]

Does Tunecore have a way of obtaining authorization from the copyright-holders so that a musician can publish a cover tune?

[PeterTuneCore]

Does Tunecore have a way of obtaining authorization from the copyright-holders so that a musician can publish a cover tune?

We've got plenty of advice for people seeking to do that, but it's not the distributor's responsibility, it's yours. So we direct folks to Harry Fox and give advice, and even show them how to use the Compulsory license if they want. But when you finally put the album into the stores through TuneCore, you agree you have the right to sell it, basically saying you've done your homework.

More here: http://www.tunecore.com/index/faq#Cover

Thanks!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[moskvariver]

Perfect. Thanks. That's exactly what I was looking for. I'm pretty excited about the possibilities with Tunecore. Working on some material right now. :thu:

[PeterTuneCore]

Perfect. Thanks. That's exactly what I was looking for. I'm pretty excited about the possibilities with Tunecore. Working on some material right now. :thu:

Awesome, Moskvariver. Thanks!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[Instrospection]

Some great advice, Peter! Good to know that soundtrack stuff sells well.

I use Nimbit right now, which is really good. I was thinking about moving to TuneCore (or supplementing sales with a TuneCore signup), but what I was wondering is--do you do any features or spotlights on bands in certain genres...you know, like a band of the day sort of thing...or what's the deal with TuneCore? I'm admittedly sort of out of the loop, but have been hearing great things? I know that I use Nimbit, because they have their own standalone OMT (online merch table) that people can buy through on a band's website or page, as well as through ITunes, Rhapsody, EMusic and some ringtones sites.

I checked out your prices on Digipaks. That's downright damned reasonable! Digi's get very expensive in lower runs for lesser known bands, so that's great that you make smaller, sub-300 runs. Most places only deal with 300 copies or up, so it's usually at least a grand, and the price doesn't seem to differ too much from the 300 unit range to the 500 unit range. Everything seems to be more expensive because of the basic setup. I'm thinking about the 6 panel digi, right now, probably 100 or 200 copies.

[PeterTuneCore]

Some great advice, Peter! Good to know that soundtrack stuff sells well.

I use Nimbit right now, which is really good. I was thinking about moving to TuneCore (or supplementing sales with a TuneCore signup), but what I was wondering is--do you do any features or spotlights on bands in certain genres...you know, like a band of the day sort of thing...or what's the deal with TuneCore? I'm admittedly sort of out of the loop, but have been hearing great things? I know that I use Nimbit, because they have their own standalone OMT (online merch table) that people can buy through on a band's website or page, as well as through ITunes, Rhapsody, EMusic and some ringtones sites.

I'm glad you're finding success, but sure, I'd love to have you distributing through TuneCore. And while only the stores themselves can choose to feature you on their sites, TuneCore does all kinds of marketing and promoting on its own, and every one of our customers are eligible. Check out our Picks of the Week, our Editor's Choice Awards, and the many iMixes and AmazonMP3 mixes we make. Things like this go on our site, and even into emails that reach 4,000,000 people a month. So it's all good!

I checked out your prices on Digipaks. That's downright damned reasonable! Digi's get very expensive in lower runs for lesser known bands, so that's great that you make smaller, sub-300 runs. Most places only deal with 300 copies or up, so it's usually at least a grand, and the price doesn't seem to differ too much from the 300 unit range to the 500 unit range. Everything seems to be more expensive because of the basic setup. I'm thinking about the 6 panel digi, right now, probably 100 or 200 copies.

By all means write manufacturing@tunecore.com and they'll give you a hand. Yep, we really have great prices, and I've seen the quality, it's excellent. Same idea as our digital distribution: we have the bulk, we can build the relationships with the stores and factories and secure great prices.

Thanks for the kind words!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[Instrospection]

I'm glad you're finding success, but sure, I'd love to have you distributing through TuneCore. And while only the stores themselves can choose to feature you on their sites, TuneCore does all kinds of marketing and promoting on its own, and every one of our customers are eligible. Check out our Picks of the Week, our Editor's Choice Awards, and the many iMixes and AmazonMP3 mixes we make. Things like this go on our site, and even into emails that reach 4,000,000 people a month. So it's all good!
peter@tunecore.com

That's great--I think that alot of other places leave their artists high and dry. Of course, due to the sheer volume of bands that you have working with you, it's not possible to feature every one, but I like to think that the bands that are out there working hard to get their music out there, that there's some sort of promotions on the hosts' end.

Either way it's great that you're here actually answering questions, Peter! That goes a long way. I think that after places like BurnLounge shut down, that it was apparent that those were industry guys looking to take advantage of bands, and in bands' cases, it's sort of hard to know who to trust--for the last while, it seems like there's a new business model every month promising to save the industry in one fell swoop. So I think that the only way to prove that sort of trust to people is through longevity and proving that one realizes that it's a struggle for most bands nowadays, and that the only way to turn around the current sales market due to record labels being hit hard by downloads and MP3's, is to help bands develop and be able to grow. And I think that you're proving that, Peter--i'm going to register with TuneCore, as well!

[PeterTuneCore]

That's great--I think that alot of other places leave their artists high and dry. Of course, due to the sheer volume of bands that you have working with you, it's not possible to feature every one, but I like to think that the bands that are out there working hard to get their music out there, that there's some sort of promotions on the hosts' end.

Either way it's great that you're here actually answering questions, Peter! That goes a long way. I think that after places like BurnLounge shut down, that it was apparent that those were industry guys looking to take advantage of bands, and in bands' cases, it's sort of hard to know who to trust--for the last while, it seems like there's a new business model every month promising to save the industry in one fell swoop. So I think that the only way to prove that sort of trust to people is through longevity and proving that one realizes that it's a struggle for most bands nowadays, and that the only way to turn around the current sales market due to record labels being hit hard by downloads and MP3's, is to help bands develop and be able to grow. And I think that you're proving that, Peter--i'm going to register with TuneCore, as well!

Thanks, truly, Introspection! That makes the long hours worth it. We're all musicians here, or industry people who were fans first and businesspersons second. It's precisely because so few people had so much power that we started TuneCore. I know it's hard to fathom, but we actually care!

Enjoy, and welcome.

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[rennyn]

That recent mistress in the news made a fortune off online distribution. I guess the key is having an affair with a US Senator/Congressperson/Governor or something.

[Instrospection]

That recent mistress in the news made a fortune off online distribution. I guess the key is having an affair with a US Senator/Congressperson/Governor or something.

Damn...I missed out on being a prostitute and then cashing in on the 15 minutes of fame from being caught with a big US governor. :)

[Barber Surgeon]

Peter, I'm about to finish up a short demo that I'm considering digitally distributing. Do you find that most people make at least a few bucks from curious listeners? I don't care about making any kind of supplemental income with my music, but I'd at least like to recover some of the expense of distribution.

[RockingRick]

So...is it actually possible to make any money from online distribution?
I was listing to this interview with Mr. Sin and he said that he didn't even know he would have a fan base overseas if he was never on a digital distribution site. So from what I gathered his sales were more in areas such as Japan and Europe than they were in the U.S. all because of Online distribution.

Here is the page I went to, to listen to his call.
http://www.howtosellmusiconitunes.com/interview.html

Kind of long but from the topic of this thread, he touches on tons of stuff.
I think this will be very informative for you and others.

[PeterTuneCore]

Peter, I'm about to finish up a short demo that I'm considering digitally distributing. Do you find that most people make at least a few bucks from curious listeners? I don't care about making any kind of supplemental income with my music, but I'd at least like to recover some of the expense of distribution.

Generally, you can make it up in "friends and family." Just about everyone who puts things in a major store like iTunes will tell their folks, their friends, coworkers, etc. If even three or four of them buy the album, you've recouped your cost of getting it up there through TuneCore. Any more is gravy. However, unless you work very hard to promote yourself, like any artist, it's unlikely it'll ever grow enormously. That makes it a vanity project, which is fine, so long as you know your expectations.

We'd love to help!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com