OCT 23

I've always been confused by physical packaging for digital goods. Why ship hunks of plastic all over the world when I can click and download an identical product without anyone having to leave their homes?

Well, obviously, digital music (and video) has taken off in the last few years. But still, the recording industry is intent on relying on those antiquated slabs of plastic as their premium product.

Well, when Radiohead finished with it's 6 album contract with EMI, they decided to change the system a bit. Their most recent album (the first in two years) was recently released in pure digital form. The band made the download available for whatever cost people are interested in paying. Apparently the average price paid has been roughly $8...significantly more than a band gets from a cut of traditional album sales.

It's a fascinating experience. The recording industry has long believed that people, in the end, want to purchase something physical. As if the plastic and paper of the product is more impotant than the actual music. Radiohead, however, is asking people what they think the music...and only the music...is worth. The answer, it's worth more, as long as the record companies don't take their cut.

More money for Radiohead, less money for us, and less physical crap existing in the world. That's good news for everyone, right? Oh...except the record companies....it's not good news for them.

Comments (9)

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Now if they can only ship it a a decent
written by TheSwampster, October 24, 2007

I applaud Radiohead for taking the plunge and releasing the album without DRM.

But, I just wish they made it available in a lossless format. I still purchased the physical media - for this reason alone.

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lossless shmossless
written by boolean, October 24, 2007

People complain about lossless format, and I laugh. Half the perceived difference is merely imaginary, and the even so it doesn't matter, because if the music sucks then the recording quality doesn't matter, but if the music's great, it does. Oh yeah, check out those Beatles albums recorded on lo-fi (by today's standards) 4 track machines. Yes laugh. The Beatles put out some of the best records and they sound great on an old creaky AM radio.

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written by Alex, October 25, 2007

I think the main thing is that people like to have cases to put on their shelves, so that they can show people who come to their house how much music they listen to and be all cultured and stuff.

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written by Ashley L now F, October 25, 2007

I think this idea is brilliant. The outdated argument that the internet is taking money away from bands (oh, the poor, impoverished little bands) has just been totally refuted. Given the option to pay basically nothing for an entire album, the average fan is still shelling out money.
Because they, you know, appreciate the music all on its own.
Like real fans ought to.
Hurrah!

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written by Luke, October 25, 2007

"the first in two years"......their last album came out in 2003

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Not so fast...
written by Corinne, October 25, 2007

I wish Radiohead were doing this for truly revolutionary purposes, but they're not. I've read articles in which their representatives have said that this is a promotional thing, meant to increase physical album sales when Radiohead signs a contract with a new record label (they are currently shopping for the best deal). I could find my references for this, but I'm too lazy at the moment.

So ultimately, Radiohead is just screwing the fans. I normally don't pay for music, but I originally thought what they were doing was so cool that I paid $10 for my download. Now I find out it was just a gimmick to get them even more money in the end. So sad, really.

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Physical albums > Digital
written by Ciaran Chelloveck, October 25, 2007

Well, I buy physical albums because I hate DRM's. I don't see the point in music that you can't share. That's half the fun. Plus I love all the special things that you get when you buy a physical album. Like when you buy the Sufjan Stevens Christmas album you get stories, stickers, pictures, posters, comics, and in-depth studies. But jewel cases are the devil. That's why I like Bjork, Acrade Fire and Of Montreal's way of doing it, using little or no plastic.

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The Joys of Physical Ownership
written by MooT BooXLé, November 07, 2007

Radiohead have been one of my favourite bands for a long time now. They have done something true to their ideals by releasing the album in a unique way, and I applaud them for it. Many are saying that it is the death knell for physical album sales...I can only hope that is not the case. I download a lot of digital albums, but nothing can replace the feeling of buying a physical album, owning it (no DRM!). The slightly inferior sound quality of digital downloads is a factor, but as broadband speeds increase and hard disk costs plummet, that will become less of an issue, since larger file sizes will not be a big deal to transfer and store on servers the worldround.
Eco-friendly packaging is the way of the future, not doing away with it entirely. Doing so would severely limit the experience that record collectors and music enthusiasts like myself hold dear. I want to display my records, not my computer folder full of PDF album art.

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written by No, November 19, 2007

I not sure I would be prepared to pay significantly for any downloaded music, I would be prepared to pay for the physical item.

I think a lot of people at least perceive far more value in a physical item than a download. An item that can't be deleted, has high quality print artwork, that can be used on multiple devices and ripped/converted for others.

And certainly DRM (not an issue in this case I appreciate) significantly devalues the download option.

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