AC/DC And Kid Rock Finally Realize That Selling Tracks Online Is Probably A Good Idea

from the well-look-at-that dept

Mon, Nov 19th 2012 9:53am — Mike Masnick

A few years ago, people always referred to the Beatles as the biggest holdouts in terms of releasing their music for sale as MP3s online (mainly iTunes). However, the Beatles finally came around in November of 2010. After that, people started putting together lists of who was left and AC/DC and Kid Rock seemed to top most of those lists. So it seems noteworthy that both have just caved. Kid Rock's new album is available on iTunes, with someone saying that he finally realized that he could "no longer ignore how much money he was leaving on the table." And, the latest is that AC/DC has come around as well. Of course, AC/DC wasn't just not selling downloadable tracks, but they seemed philosophically opposed to the whole concept based on some of their quotes:

"I know the Beatles have changed but we're going to carry on like that," guitarist Angus Young told Sky News in May 2011, after the Beatles had ended their own iTunes holdout. "For us it's the best way. We are a band who started off with albums and that's how we've always been."

Back in October 2008, the band were even more hardline. "Maybe I'm just being old-fashioned, but this iTunes, God bless 'em, it's going to kill music if they're not careful," singer Brian Johnson told Reuters.

"It's a...monster, this thing. It just worries me. And I'm sure they're just doing it all in the interest of making as much...cash as possible. Let's put it this way, it's certainly not for the... love, let's get that out of the way, right away."

Yup. But apparently they're finally realizing that maybe it helps to go where your fans are. A bit late.

Of course, looking at those quotes, they sound mighty familiar to what we're hearing these days about other services like Pandora and Spotify. Why is it that there's always a contingent of musicians who so want to hate the services that actually deliver a legal product to fans?

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Filed Under: ac/dc, itunes, kid rock, mp3s, music, sales

44 Comments

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weneedhelp (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 9:59am

Too late
Everything I have has been converted from album/cd by AC/DC, and the newer stuff sucks. Kidd who? Isn't he that country guy?
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:07am

AC/DC has always been stuck in a time loop. Why do you think they keep releasing the same album 15 times?
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That Anonymous Coward (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:14am

Re: Too late
Except they still most likely believe that format shifting is stealing from them.
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Travis, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:14am

Wow the balls on this guy...
... It's going to kill music if they're not careful.

Seriously? ... Seriously? Music has been around for as long as men have ears to hear it. A music service of any kind will not kill the desire for that form of expression to be produced and heard.

Nor will asshat bands, RIAA or any other dumbass. THANK GOD.
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Josef Anvil (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:17am

RIAA Hardliners
Don't be too hard on these artists. They are very used to the parasitic relationship they have with their labels and are being told how bad the internet is for music.

It's not really their fault that they don't have a clue how music is shared now or how quickly they fall off the radar.

This is for AC/DC, Kid Rock and any other hold outs.

Consumer wants music. Consumer thinks of AC/DC song he likes. Consumer goes to iTunes to buy song. Song isn't there so consumer looks on Spotify. Song isn't there so consumer gives up and thinks of a song from another band and looks on iTunes. Song is there, consumer buys.

So much is now available to the consumer on iTunes and Spotify that consumer quickly forgets about the music that isn't available.
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orbitalinsertion (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:25am

Re: RIAA Hardliners
Not to worry, iTunes will eventually become the next abusive distributor. The bands can have it all.

The model is great. Apple, not so much, unfortunately.
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Zakida Paul (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:29am

Don't blame ACDC
They are a band from an era where the Internet was not an option. They had to sign with a record label because there was no other option at that time and said record label have them brainwashed (just like other bands on the books) into believing this Internet thing is a fad.

It is great to see them selling digitally but it won't matter to me as they are one of a few bands for whom I have all of their physical albums.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:29am

hasn't took them long to get into the swing of things, then, has it?
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Dakota, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:31am

I think it's a good idea
Music now-a-days is usually bought by iTunes. ACDC and Kid Rock will have more money from a huge fan base.
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Zakida Paul (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:34am

Re: Too late
I liked ACDC's last album. Some very good songs on there
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Zakida Paul (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:35am

Re:
Considering the shite spouted by record labels, I am surprised it has happened at all.
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weneedhelp (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:40am

Re: Re: Too late
Since Flick Of The Switch, its all been downhill, IMHO.
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PlagueSD (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:42am

Re: Too late
Kidd Rock is that guy that screwed up Sweet Home Alabama with his "version" of All Summer Long.
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themusicgod1, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:44am

who?
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MrWilson, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:49am

Re: Re: Too late
They waited until 2012 in order to sell their tracks online. They already left that money on the table.

Not to mention that I bought tapes of their albums before CDs and CD players got cheap, but I still copied single songs to mix tapes because that was the way to listen to their music the way I wanted. Though I do have to say that some of their albums had good play through for sequential tracks, like side two of Back in Black).

If you leave money lying around for ten years, don't be surprised if it's not there when you wake up from your self-induced digital coma.
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out_of_the_blue, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:51am

Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
Even if wrong on their notions, they've just given in to greed. Note "cash" and "money" are the stated motives.

But as usual, you try to play this exercise in greed as supporting your notions. Here's just some of the ways it's generally applicable to the current "business model":

)Itunes was funded by deep deep pocket Apple, with attendant promotion + muscling of industry.

) The bands ref'd have already (LONG since for one) been promoted, gotten a following -- besides gotten back many, many times over their "sunk (or fixed) costs", so according to Mike should be charging only just above incremental cost of bandwidth, but they ain't.

) "but this iTunes" -- Is revolting, just another middle-man making more money than artists. HOW is that new and improved? All you're saying is that the middle-men have changed. [I wouldn't touch Itunes with YOUR pole. Note that I've left a specific length out to prevent obvious jokes.]

Click here for Mike "Streisand Effect" Masnick!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect
Help make Mike the #1 quipper on the net! -- Click one for The Quipper!
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Lord Binky, 19 Nov 2012 @ 10:56am

No one these guys have ever worked with was doing it for the love of music while just by coincidence just happened to be making tons of money at the same time.

They must believe their dealers when they tell them that they sell the cocaine because they love the drug, not the money.

If you ever did anything in the previous music industry purely for the love of music, you got taken advantage of by someone who did it for the love of money, end result always being the guy in control was doing it for the love of money. What's new? They don't have someone hired by the industry to be their personal assistant anymore? That's there for the love of music of course.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:00am

"but this iTunes" -- Is revolting, just another middle-man making more money than artists.

Actually, I'm fairly sure artists make more than iTunes per track. And as far as being a middle man goes, you assume that's necessarily a BAD thing. The middle mans job is to get product to consumers, and frankly, for the most part iTunes does it better than a band having a few MP3's on their website.
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Zakida Paul (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:03am

Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
You confuse me, idiot. Are you not one of the people who is always lambasting pirates and talking about how artists should be getting paid? Now, you are lambasting artists who take a measure that will increase their revenue?

You are very inconsistent.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:09am

Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
ootb, y u no like artists getting paid?!
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That One Guy (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:13am

Re: Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
On the contrary, he, and other trolls like him are very consistent, in that they always take the stance opposite of the article, whatever it happens to be.

Now, when it comes to being logically consistent with their points, that's another thing entirely, and in that you would be totally correct.
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Digitari, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:16am

Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
OOTB is a fucking freetard and ADMITS it

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111208/12500917012/riaa-doesnt-apologize-year-long-blog-cen sorship-just-stands-its-claim-that-site-broke-law.shtml

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:18am

Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
Of course, money is the motive. It's the whole point of selling something.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:27am

All this means is the find artwork button will finally work on my AC/DC albums! I already had all their old stuff on CD. This might make me take a look at new stuff though.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:28am

It's a monster! lol
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Lord Binky, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:34am

Re:
Luckily we have bands full of superheros (well, they have the costumes..) like the Aquabats to protect us from monsters.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:37am

I suspect Angus just realized itunes is a "license" and not a "sale", and they signed their contract way before the internet.
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Jeffrey Nonken (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:43am

"Maybe I'm just being old-fashioned..."

Yes.

"...this iTunes, God bless 'em, it's going to kill music if they're not careful."

[citation needed]
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That Anonymous Coward (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:49am

One always has to question the real reason in these cases.
There are many notorious holdouts from digital sales, and some gave in only a little bit when Apple allowed them to block single sales.

The idea that their album is perfect and awesome and to break it into tracks somehow ruins their artist credibility... so why are they not blocking themselves from radio?
The real reason, I suspect, is they have contracts that predate the idea of singles. They do not understand the digital music scene and only see they are getting a small amount vs the large amount they get for a whole album. So they feel it is in their best interests to sell only the "full album" rather than to let the fans decide what they like and want.
Look how long it took cassette singles to get popular, and then cd singles. Are they any different than the 45's from the ice age of music? Popular track on side a and something else on side b. Funny how some b sides ended up being much more popular than the promoted a side.
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DogBreath, 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:53am

So how does AC/DC explain this?
Rock Solid: AC/DC Stand Firm On Downloads

Speaking at the world premiere of their new concert film in London, the band�s guitarist Angus Young said he refuses to sanction allowing individual tracks to be downloaded because their songs should be heard as part of a full album.

So all of those 45 RPM records of AC/DC songs should have never been produced because "their songs should be heard as part of a full album" (I've never heard of a full album being only two songs, but I guess it's possible). Oh wait, that is how many, many songs were sold in those days. Too bad if they had some kind of record contract that wouldn't let them choose what would be released onto 45's back then, but the digital distribution angle "anvil" clearly fell upon their heads by their own design.

It took them long enough to discover that these are not "those days" anymore, and to actually allow the fans to purchase the music the way they want to buy it. Just because someone loves a song on an album, it won't make them automatically love the rest of them.
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gorehound (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 11:54am

Re: Too late
I personally am not into this Band at all.I might of liked them for a short while in the 70's but they are not my bag at all.Just another one of the whining Big Sell-Out Rock Acts.

On the other hand I have no issues at all crankin to 11 my Rose Tattoo Vinyl LP's.
Nice Boys Don't Play Rock N Roll !!!

And in the streets the garbage lies
Protected by a million flies
With roaches so big they got bones
They moved in and made themselves at home

I say nice boys...don't play rock'n'roll
Nice boys...don't play rock'n'roll
I'm not a nice boy!
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Lowestofthekeys (profile), 19 Nov 2012 @ 12:31pm

Re: Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
I think OOTB missed the part of debate class where you're supposed to make coherent arguments.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 3:02pm

And of course, Aussie fans get screwed over again by the inequities of the pricing schemes on iTunes. Aussie store : AU$16.99 for an Album, compared to USA Store US$9.99...

Or AU$2.19 per track compared to US$1.29. And the AUD exchange rate is $1AUD = $1.03USD.
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Wolfy, 19 Nov 2012 @ 4:13pm

Re:
It must cost extra to push electrons to Australia...
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 5:44pm

Re: RIAA Hardliners
John Cougar Mellonhead needs to wake up as well...

TechDirt - John Mellencamp: Thou Shalt Not Permit The Internet To Derail Our Gravy Train

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20121026/18271720860/john-mellencamp-thou-shalt-not-permit -internet-to-derail-our-gravy-train.shtml
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Nov 2012 @ 5:57pm

Re: Re:
And the best part is that darryl actually supports this. darryl, an Australian, supports the limitation and reduction of culture that his country is legally allowed to access.

Someone's bread is clearly getting buttered a lot on one side, because only a psychopathic idiot would support such an initiative.
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PaulT (profile), 20 Nov 2012 @ 1:02am

Re: Re: Re: Too late
I've not listened to anything they've done recently. Something to do with me not buying CDs any more and not being able to access digital versions legally...
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PaulT (profile), 20 Nov 2012 @ 1:08am

Re: Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
"You are very inconsistent"

No, these guys are completely consistent. They *have* to attack the site and Mike for anything and everything - even if the argument they use to do so is both stupid and contradicts every other position they've stated.
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PaulT (profile), 20 Nov 2012 @ 1:14am

Re: Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
No, no, no... this is the story Mike's written about artists getting paid, so they have to pretend to be on the side of culture and artistic endeavour. You're referring to the response to the next article Mike writes about greater freedom and creativity, at which point ootb and his crew will whine about artists not getting paid millions for something they did 30 years ago.
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Niall (profile), 20 Nov 2012 @ 7:27am

Re: Why do you always trumpet sell-outs?
Apple only 'muscled in' because the music industry fell asleep on the job and sleep-sued Napster into uselessness, throwing the digital baby out with the bathwater. Then tried to sue anyone else with any digital connection. It took a company with the size and cojones (and lawyers) of Apple to force them into doing the right thing a little, finally. Remind me, why are we supposed to feel sympathy for the music industry?

And no-one is saying that the bands 'ought' to get nothing for what they did. Just that they don't 'deserve' to get whatever random number they assume from past glories. Copyright shouldn't be welfare, let alone a multi-generational stipend.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Nov 2012 @ 7:22am

you guys should be thank full that acdc is on itunes because i have been waitinga while for this
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Anonymous Coward, 5 Feb 2013 @ 6:26am

hi
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Justme, 20 Jun 2016 @ 7:37pm

Re: Re: Too late
He did that to more then one song, Pisses me off every time i hear the song start only to find out it's actually the kid rock rip-offoff.
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Dan, 28 May 2019 @ 3:20pm

youtube
we want those albums back on youtube! I needed those songs!
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