Digital Release Strategy for Chinese Democracy would be best/MCPS-PRS Alliance

[Bright Eyes 2005]

As many of you know (which the data below shows is the most important factor--the "knowing"), Radiohead released "In Rainbows" online.  I think it was only a 12 to 14 song album.  We all know, GNR has 40 to 70 songs in the bag.  When analyzing the #'s found in the story below, the best way to release an album is online--due to the sharing that happens--the sharing is what makes the bands fanbase grow, and at the end of the day, that is what it's all about monetarily speaking.  In fact, the leaks were a huge benefit for the band--the more people that download them, the more people that are into GN'R, the more stories written about them, the more attending shows, etc. (2002 #'s vs. 2006 #'s possibly confirm this, as the leaks reinvigorated the bands status)  The excercise alone of downloading a band's songs, and then sharing it with others, increases a bands visibility.  People are into habit, and the easier for them to continue to get their music in their habitual way, the more they will download and pay attention to a certain band.  The more people into the band, the more there are to visit their website and purchase DVD's, gear, and pay-for-downloads of content. 

So take Radioheads' In Rainbows while hyped, and unanimously praised artisticially, it did not have the hype that CD will.  Moreover, compound this by the fact that GN'R potentially could release three batches of 15 songs in succession, or 30 or 40 at once, and you have the recipe for major sharing and growth in popularity.  Moreover, with the upload feature on Rock Band, you have an additional conduit for revenue and sharing. The model has changed, and Wired Mag has an article, as well as a link to the MCPS-PRS study showing the massive upside for digital release--especially when you can drive users back through your website.  I am hoping GN'R is taking note of this, as the a massive digitial release seems to be the best way to get their credibility re-invigorated, and will jump-start tours, upcoming releases, and revenues.

http://blog.wired.com/music/2008/07/new-in-rainbows.html

http://www.mcps-prs-alliance.co.uk/monline/research/Pages/default.aspx

[Jordan123]

Yes it would be the best strategy but it won't happen.  I'd lol if CD was released under a Creative Commons License though.

[Bigphil1]

Agreed, that would be a big step forward for GN'R. I think this will at least have been seriously considered for a release strategy.
Thanks for posting! 

[rosehudson]

it's a good idea but i want a physical cd with artwork and lyrics if they did both i would be happy but if they only put it for download i wouldn't see the point in paying for (lets face people download MP3s illegally everyday) therefore in my opinion it would have to be cd and download

[Bright Eyes 2005]

Of course they would, like Radiohead and NIN have done, release a physical album--vinyl, collectors issue, and box set with bonus material/DVD.

FYI, while I am sure management has seen this, someone should make sure and e-mail the links with the study and article to them or at least Jarmo.

[mistersaintlaurent]

far more NIN & radiohead fans are tech savvy than GNR fans. GNR's audience skews way too old to worry about this kind of stuff. they need a song on the radio & a video on VH1 and a CD on the shelf in stores shortly thereafter.

[GGS]

Just think of how much shit they're sitting on that could make them $$$$$$$$$ pro shot footage and different song mixes everything whack it up on DL only and to beat torrent streaming off with a stick for a tiny while maxing some money for them add a new show footage or song a week for a month or more.

They're too stupid i think even though Universal is waking up to this shit.

[Bright Eyes 2005]

MSL, I think GN'R has many tech savvy fans--and a load of curious non-die-hard fans who are tech savvy as well.  Overall, I think the GN'R fanbase also has many traditional older fans who find news about the band through the radio (which explains DJ's are full of it and out of the loop many times--often cited misinformation) and other more traditional means like VH1 and print.  What I am saying is, at the end of the day, GN'R still has a larger POTENTIAL fanbase, than NIN or Radiohead (whose fanbase is generally more connected percentage wise, but overall smaller).  So while, per capita, Radiohead and NIN fans are more tech savvy--let's say 70% of their fans would download an album, as opposed to 40% of GN'R's fans dowloading--GN'R's 40% are equal to their 70% hard #'s wise, and GN'R's 60% non-tech savvy fan's far outnumber those bands 30% of non-tech savvy fans.

I think GN'R worldwide still has 5 to 10 million potential fans, while Radiohead and NIN have about 3 to 5 million potential fans for each release.

[rosehudson]

^1 but still i would rather a cd. as you put 60% would

[Bright Eyes 2005]

This type of rollout would enhance CD sales, if done right.  They would release a collectors type CD, with DVD content, extras, etc.  Moreover, they could make a killing out of issuing collectors vinyl with killer inserts and books explaing the making of the album, etc.  The model is not "exclusive" of hard copy release--in fact it could enhance and compliment that release if done correctly.  The Rockband importing, though, is "exclusive", as one has to download the songs into the game.

[Sweersa]

far more NIN & radiohead fans are tech savvy than GNR fans. GNR's audience skews way too old to worry about this kind of stuff. they need a song on the radio & a video on VH1 and a CD on the shelf in stores shortly thereafter.

Agreed, physical format is still in my opinion the best option for obvious reasons. 

[ryn_smith]

I think its best to sell it as both, I wud buy the CD. However people are obviously going to download it illegally. A possible way around this wud be if u downloaded it frm gunsnroses.com. U get something like proshot concert, a b side or whatever. The CD wud imo probably contain extras, but u cud, say get a code which u typed in to the site and u get something.  But i dunno.......

[L!VE FREE!]

While I agree that a Digital Release would be essential to making the album a success, I think that it also needs to follow traditional methods as well. Along with viral marketing and other non-traditional measures such as Rock Band 2, digital downloads are a very smart idea and would help capture a younger demographic and help bring in new fans.

That being said, GN'R does have an older fanbase. Even though I would love to see at minimum 320kpbs .mp3 and .m4a files or at best ultra high quality 24bit, 96kHz, 1000 kbps Apple Lossless and .flac files, these things are largely lost on the typical GN'R fan.

The average GN'R fan has what? A couple year old PC and tiny little earbuds for headphones? Maybe some of the olders have a proper sound system. But most people don't have the hardware for these kinds of releases and while it would be nice, it would be for a niche crowd only.

NIN fans and more-so Radiohead fans are a specific group. Most of them are very tech savvy and have the latest, bleeding edge technology. And while I think there are some GN'R fans that fall into this category, very few of them are audiophiles.

Most of the younger people on our humble forum couldn't tell you what artist Blonde on Blonde or Kind of Blue or Astral Weeks belong to. A good amount of them haven't heard of The Stooges or The Stone Roses either. And on the hardware side how many people on the forums have heard of brands like Grado, Sennheiser, or Denon?

I'm not trying to be elitist, but the point is, most GN'R fans are very simple fans. Give them the CD, show some commercials on TV, and be in magazines. Like RoseHudson said, most would prefer the physical album. Even though I would love (and need) the high quality files mentioned above, there's nothing more exciting than waiting in line with a group of fans waiting to buy the album. It's a communal experience and it's one that will never go out of style, however high the quality is.

  L!

[Sweersa]

Chinese Democracy will most likely be released both in physical format (CD obviously) and on itunes or whatever people use.  But seriously, just because people have PC's and internet access doesn't mean they know how to download and/or buy mp3 tracks and burn them onto blanks, believe me, many people can do this, but a lot can't also or have no idea, they just buy it physically.   

Don't forget about automobiles, stereos and other devices that usually use just CDs and such.  Illegal file sharing isn't as "bad" as some of you guys think.  An album like this will make money no matter what.