brass tacks: wtf IS digital distribution? what does it fully entail?

[bluesway]

so at this point, i've likely received my 30th offer for someone to digitally distribute my music through their company.....since the new year. i see tunecore (and still have a shaky understanding of what it is...other than a "one-stop" for getting your mp3s sold in a number of outlets.....and further explanation would be appreciated) and i see it as another "choice," but for what?

what i don't get is how IS it distribution when it's just filing mp3s on websites? distribution used to involve administering shipping, filling orders packing, warehousing, all logistics, billing, etc. what does the digital distributing company DO for you as far as administration? ANYTHING? it doesn't make sense to me. even tunecore (as i'm understanding it to be....pending further explanation) is just putting it up and forgetting about it....taking pennies off of each sale. i think that something like tunecore would be a wiser choice than the 30+ guys who have contacted me, but still: what's the point? can't i just do this on my own? Have i already started distributing myself when i posted my music on soundclick and put it for sale?

fix the way i'm thinking here. i needs me some fixin' :)

any help or info you can give me will be very much appreciated.

thanks,
g

PS- peter, i'm thinking you're the guy to set me straight. :)

[PeterTuneCore]

...what i don't get is how IS it distribution when it's just filing mp3s on websites? distribution used to involve administering shipping, filling orders packing, warehousing, all logistics, billing, etc. what does the digital distributing company DO for you as far as administration? ANYTHING? it doesn't make sense to me. even tunecore (as i'm understanding it to be....pending further explanation) is just putting it up and forgetting about it....taking pennies off of each sale. i think that something like tunecore would be a wiser choice than the 30+ guys who have contacted me, but still: what's the point? can't i just do this on my own? fix the way i'm thinking here. i need fixin' :)

g

Funny, g, we had the same question. That's actually why we founded TuneCore. WE DON'T TAKE PENNIES OFF YOUR SALE. Therein likes a big difference.

I've written about this before here on HC, so I'll just give the short version. Digital distribution IS as simple as putting your files up in the stores. There is no warehouse, no staff managing inventory, no insurance in case the roof leaks onto the stock, none of that. So digital distributors don't DESERVE pennies, or your rights, or exclusivity, or minimum term periods or any of the stuff they charged you for in the old days.

Now there is work. Unlike boxes of CDs or vinyl, digital files are finicky, and every store has its own requirements for delivery. It's not easy to manage or store them, it takes significant effort and special computer code to manage the payments, etc. etc. So digital distributors deserve a fee, BUT THAT'S IT: a fee, not a cut.

That's TuneCore. We're going to charge you for delivering the album (usually about $10), and a yearly fee for managing it ($19.98). In return, you don't need to have a contract with the store, or build the infrastructure to deliver, change, maintain, re-encrypt, redeliver, and on and on. Also, TuneCore is already one of iTunes's largest content suppliers, so we get access to the Big Guys who decide who features what, and you get the benefit of our voice. There are lots of other benefits, but you can read all about those on our site or on my posts here.

So yeah, use TuneCore if you don't want the old model of percentages. That model may have made sense in the days of warehouses and bargaining with store managers to put your albums by the cash register, but on the Internet, it just doesn't make sense. As for those things which are the equivalent of "by the cash register," beware anyone who promises what they can't deliver, and enjoy the freedom to be part of things which are real, which we DO deliver! I talk about all those on other posts. :)

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[doug osborne]

... can't i just do this on my own? ... :)

every store has its own requirements for delivery. It's not easy to manage or store them, it takes significant effort and special computer code to manage the payments, etc. etc.

iTunes, eMusic, etc. won't talk to you directly. A digital aggregator like TuneCore is necessary at this time, and your analogy to a one-stop is good.

IMO iTunes etc. are hanging on to a bit of the old-school record label mentality - an artist has to go through some layer of business before being deemed worthy for distribution. iTunes' distribution costs them very, very little, the marketing they offer (or that the aggregator offers) is usually a small fraction of what the artist or their managment provides, and they probably should find a way to eliminate the middleman (sorry, Peter!) and deal directly with artists.

[PeterTuneCore]

iTunes, eMusic, etc. won't talk to you directly. A digital aggregator like TuneCore is necessary at this time, and your analogy to a one-stop is good.

IMO iTunes etc. are hanging on to a bit of the old-school record label mentality - an artist has to go through some layer of business before being deemed worthy for distribution. iTunes' distribution costs them very, very little, the marketing they offer (or that the aggregator offers) is usually a small fraction of what the artist or their managment provides, and they probably should find a way to eliminate the middleman (sorry, Peter!) and deal directly with artists.

It's funny, but "middleman" can be a bad thing and a good. Someone who acts as a gatekeeper, or who uses their bottleneck like a greedy toll-collector over a rickety rope bridge--that's evil. Those who would use their position monopolistically--that's evil. We founded TuneCore to be "good" middlemen: no cut, no exorbitant fees, and we don't discriminate: so long as your music follows the rules and you have all the rights, we don't care, we'll pass you along.

But there's more to being a "good" middleman. We figured our accounting system alone would be worth the cost. iTunes simply won't incur the expense and exposure of dealing with millions of artists directly, so we take on that risk--again, a great service to the store. Bandwidth costs, storage, redelivery, compression to proper spec: can you imagine how much it would cost iTunes to say, "no, you didn't deliver your music to proper spec, send it again"? Well, it's a lot, I know because it's something we do daily. That's a service too, and well worth it.

So I take "middleman" as a badge of honor. So long as it's never predatory, so long as it's market-driven, fair, and helps people in proportion to what they're paying, long live that kind of middleman!

Middleperson? Is there a PC way to say it? :)

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com

[bluesway]

peter,

could i start selling in tunecore WITHOUT having album art yet, and then just update it later for the disk, OR would it be a better idea to wait until i get the art done. (it's a stupid question, but whaddayagonnado? i'm a musician. :) )

[PeterTuneCore]

peter,

could i start selling in tunecore WITHOUT having album art yet, and then just update it later for the disk, OR would it be a better idea to wait until i get the art done. (it's a stupid question, but whaddayagonnado? i'm a musician. :) )

Sadly, Bluesway, all the stores demand artwork or they won't process it. We can help you create artwork, if you'd like! It's a separate service. Write me if you're curious (peter@tunecore.com).

Thanks!

--Peter
peter@tunecore.com