Have you noticed that everywhere you look in the music biz the word "exploitation" has been replaced by promotion?
I've just read an article from 2013 where PJ Bloom (leading music supervisor) says he's amazed that artists are paid anything for music sync (music set to images, TV etc) and those musicians should give content away as a promotional opportunity.
Now this rings alarm bells and it points to the future demise of sync rates which are already plummeting.
We, the content creators, are being conditioned from all angles of the music biz to give away content as a means of self promotion.
BUT WHAT ARE WE PROMOTING OURSELVES FOR?
We give away sync fees as self promotion.
Promotion for what? CD sales that no-one buys.
Because we're giving away content on youtube etc. Which we're told is a great promotional tool for driving listeners to streaming sites.
Streaming sites that pay revenue the equivalent to the cost of a cup of coffee for 1,000,000 plays. But we're told to accept it as it's a great promotional tool for increasing listeners.
Listeners that won't buy your CD's because you're giving away content on sync, youtube, streaming, everywhere because it's a great promotional tool!!!
Surely to promote a product there has to be an end sale to justify the means.
Where is it?
As I said earlier and will end with. It seems we as content creators hold all the cards but are being condition to give away content under the guise of self-promotion.
To me it seems that self-promotion has become the new word for exploitation so that the money that is still being generated by this failing market can be kept by those who have always craved it and have held the reins for so long.
Read the PJ Bloom article HERE
Have fun