Only The Record Labels Could Think That Teasers For Music Videos Is A Good Idea

from the we-interrupt-this-video dept

Tue, Feb 20th 2007 1:55am — Joseph Weisenthal

Music videos have always basically been promotional tools used to drum up interest in a band, as opposed to money makers in their own right. It makes sense then to have music videos freely available on file-sharing networks and sites like YouTube. After all, if the point is promotion, why would anyone worry about copyright or royalties? Of course, the music labels do worry very much about such things, as evidenced by all of the lawsuits and saber rattling on their part. A new plan by a division of UMG to distribute un-protected music videos over file-sharing networks seems, at first, like a step in the right direction. But then, in a move so baffling it could only come from the recording industry, the label has decided to totally shoot itself in the foot. Instead of offering the whole video, consumers will only be shown half the video before getting re-directed to the label's site where they can watch the whole version. So essentially, they're distributing a teaser for the music video, which makes as much sense as having a teaser for a commercial. Furthermore, if a music fan is searching for a music video, and they realize they've accidentally downloaded a copy that cuts out half way through, wouldn't they just go back and find a full-length version? As we've said before, you don't compete with free by being lame.

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12 Comments

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ScytheNoire, 20 Feb 2007 @ 4:07am

Holy Stupidity Batman!
I'm just speechless at the level of stupidity of this. It just baffles me as to what they could possibly be thinking. Let's piss off our potential clients to help increase sales? Why do these companies keep purposely find new ways to piss off their (potential) customers? I just don't get it.
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ConceptJunkie (profile), 20 Feb 2007 @ 5:01am

Re: Holy Stupidity Batman!
>Why do these companies keep purposely find new ways to piss off their (potential) customers?

Because until the last 10-15 years the media companies had a monopoly on distribution of content. Now they don't, and the customer is the only one they can take it out on because their 19th century business model no longer makes sense. It's vindictiveness, pure and simple. They resent the fact that they have to work harder to get the same money they used to be able to get for doing virtually nothing but putting the media on CDs or tapes or laserdiscs and shipping them off to the stores.
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Strofcon, 20 Feb 2007 @ 6:09am

If that's the case...
If they don't want me to watch more than half a music video for free, why should I be inclined to pay any more than half the price of a CD?
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Overcast, 20 Feb 2007 @ 6:18am

They (RIAA & Music Industry) just strike me more and more everyday like a bunch of crack addicted prostitutes, all hungry for a buck and willing to cut any throat to get their fix~!
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PhysicsGuy, 20 Feb 2007 @ 6:50am

well
hasn't mtv been doing this for a while now? last time i checked (which isn't often or recently) they only play a limited clip... which may extend all the way to [gasp] 2/3 of the video, but, either way, this idea shouldn't be new to anyone (although, at least it makes a little more sense why the record companies are doing so as opposed to mtv)
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Tara, 20 Feb 2007 @ 6:51am

Pathetic
What a pisser! That reminds me of when I downloaded stuff off kazaa and all it was was the chorus looping, sometimes it would take a while for me to realize I'd been had! The RIAA should give up...people are using encrypted file sharing solutions now too, so they won't be able to track stuff that people are sharing. There's several solutions out there such as Gigatribe ( http://www.gigatribe.com ). It's time to stop taking consumers for fools.
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The Original Just Me, 20 Feb 2007 @ 9:02am

Don't You See!
Customers are downloading the music videos for the couple of songs they like instead of buying the entire CD (which incidentally is padded with a bunch of filler and B-Sides that nobody has ever heard because the RIAA floods the radio stations with the one or two singles from each album).
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Anonymous Coward, 20 Feb 2007 @ 9:43am

I've never understood why the music and film industries keep pushing music video snippets and movie trailers as a legitimate substitute for real content.

What kind of moron would download this crap? It's like volunteering to watch commercials...
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Trey Smith, 20 Feb 2007 @ 9:59am

Enough already
Who cares about the record industry?? Jeesh move on to legalizing marijuana while your beating a dead horse..
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fed-up anti-RIAA/MPAA/(E)TLA people, 20 Feb 2007 @ 10:53am

A lesson from the past
This reminds me of the stunt that was pulled back in the 80s by either pepsi or coke for a new soda that totaly bombed. They had commercials about the upcoming commercial. In retrospect they saw how much of a waste of money it was. By doing this, they treat the consumer once again like a complete idiot. Really folks, study some history and learn from the mistakes of that past (not to mention the mistakes you keep on making). But I suppose that it would take too much effort of their part to actualy work for the money they are gaining from their current usury.
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Koz, 20 Feb 2007 @ 12:22pm

But it's all free !
Having read the linked article it seems the whole video is free; you watch the first half from the file shareing network then go to the label's own site to watch te whole thing along with the adverts.
I seems obvious that the adverts pay for the video. Is that unreasonable ? - techdirt often pushes the view that labels should not expect to make money off the music it's self but should come up with a new business model, and here's a new and, it seems, completely inoffensive business model !
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D-BOY, 21 Feb 2007 @ 7:07pm

FREE
FREE IS FREE.

I MAKE MY OWN TRACKS.

I PUT SOME OUT FOR FREE AND OTHER FOR FREE.

IT IS ALL THIS FAST FREE CREATIVITY THAT MAKES IT SO HARD FOR THE BIG WIGS TO CONTROL.

IF I WANT YOU TO GET MY PROJECTS, I WILL PUT IT OUT FOR FREE AND GIVE IT ALL TO YOU.

IF YOU WANT TO BUY IT, I WILL GIVE YOU A SOUND BITE. IF YOU WANT IT, THE YOU GOT IT.

IF YOU DOWNLOAD MY TRACKS FROM MYSPACE.COM/1DBOY YOU GET THE FULL PROJECT.

IF YOU GO TO MY SOUNDCLICK, YOU GET SAMPLES AND CAN BUY THE FULL SONG.

SEE IT IS NOT THAT HARD. THE LABELS SHOULD HAVE DONE THE WEB.2 FREE SONGS DOWNLOAD WITH FULL TRACKS ALL-IN-ONE WITH THE PAY-SIDE AS WELL. ALLOW OPEN-ENDED SHOPPING AND SALES AND WE SHOULD BE HAPPY UNTIL SOMEONE FINDS SOMETHING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT.
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