Net (via via) het bericht gekregen dat in Amerika Universal de CD-prijzen gaat verlagen. Zou dit nu ook in Nederland gaan gebeuren?
____________________________________________________________
From: UMG Corporate Communications
Sent: Wednesday, September 03, 2003 12:12 PM
Subject: A MESSAGE FROM DOUG MORRIS AND ZACH HOROWITZ
Dear Colleagues:
Today we are making a major announcement which we wanted you to hear
about directly from us. We have made a decision to significantly
reduce our CD prices in the U.S. starting in the 4th quarter. On
virtually all top line CDs, we will lower the wholesale price from
$12.02 to $9.09, with a Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price of $12.98
(eliminating the $16.98, $17.98 and $18.98 equivalent MSRPs). With
this new pricing model, we believe that most retailers will be able to
offer our music for less than $10.00, if they so choose.
This is an aggressive move - but the state of the business calls for
bold actions. The stores and consumers have been telling us that CD
prices are too high. Because many music fans are getting music for
free through online piracy, we believe that we need to lower prices to
be more competitive with the illegal market. We are also vying for
consumer dollars and shelf space with more and more forms of
entertainment media. Our new policy will enable music to be offered at
a much more appealing price point in comparison to these other
entertainment products.
As part of this initiative, we are also planning to significantly
increase spending on direct-to-consumer advertising that will greatly
raise awareness of our artists and their music as well as highlight our
new, everyday low prices. We are confident this will help drive fans
back to the stores and increase our overall sales.
If this new pricing initiative is to succeed, we will need a meaningful
increase in our sales to offset the reduction in our wholesale prices.
All of our research indicates that these new, everyday low prices can
lead to dramatic increases in sales at retail. Since UMG is responsible
for more than one out of every four albums sold in the U.S., we are
uniquely positioned to implement this new strategy. Our size affords us
the critical mass to really give this a chance and, hopefully,
reinvigorate the retail business.
At the same time, we are ramping up our efforts to counter the illegal
distribution of our music on P2P services. The technical
countermeasures we are using to frustrate the P2P experience are
working. The dangers of P2P services - including viruses and privacy
issues - are being revealed as never before. This month, the Judiciary
Committee of the US Senate will hold hearings alerting the public to
the uncontrolled dissemination of pornography through P2P services.
Oftentimes, a search by the name of a recording artist is the vehicle
that leads unsuspecting music fans to pornographic images, including
child pornography.
Additionally, in the weeks to come, the industry will begin its
lawsuits against P2P users who are illegally distributing our music
online. These suits will supplement the educational campaign we
launched over a year ago. They will send a strong message that it is
illegal to distribute our music online without authorization. And they
will make it very clear that those who engage in these activities face
serious legal and financial repercussions. The lawsuits, together with
the educational campaign and the public awareness of the dangers of P2P
use, will lead many to explore purchasing music legitimately again -
both online and at retail. Reducing our prices at retail now will
underscore that music is a great entertainment value.
And, of course, at the same time, UMG is aggressively making its music
available online through an ever-increasing number of legitimate
services. We continue to be the most innovative in our offerings and
have priced our music so that online retailers can sell it for as low
as .99 a track and $9.99 per album. =20 UMG has consistently
re-written the way business is done in the music industry. We have
broken all records and set the bar for what a music company can
accomplish. We are once again making a bold step with this move. The
willingness to take a chance is what makes our company's culture so
special.
Doug Morris Zach Horowitz
― Stephan Schipper (Stephan Schipper), Friday, 5 September 2003 07:17 (twenty-one years ago)
t heeft hier al in de krant gestaan, maar het lijkt voorals nog alleen om amerika te gaan.
Universal verlaagt prijzen cd's
4 sep 2003
AMSTERDAM (ANP/DFT) -
Het downloaden van muziek op internet en het illegaal kopiëren van muziek-cd's heeft Universal Music Group (UMG) tot forse prijsdalingen bewogen.
Voor zijn cd's in de Verenigde Staten verlaagt het concern de adviesprijs tot 12,98 dollar, een vermindering van rond de 30 procent. UMG heeft artiesten als Bon Jovi, Mariah Carey en Eminem en eenderde van de Amerikaanse cd-markt in handen.
― marieke (marieke), Friday, 5 September 2003 07:42 (twenty-one years ago)
Wall Street Journal meldde gisteren tevens dat er ook consolidatie ophanden is. Doorgaans heeft dat een opschoning van de artiestenstal tot gevolg. Het kan gunstig zijn voor de prijzen, maar ongunstig voor de diversiteit (en verversing) van het aanbod.
Kijk naar de fusie tussen Universal en Polygram, en in welke mate dat in een verhoogd aanbod en lagere prijzen heeft geresulteerd.
― Gerrie Spaansen, Wednesday, 10 September 2003 09:16 (twenty-one years ago)
two months pass...
Consolidatie is inderdaad gebeurd, nu Sony Music en BMG fuseren. Wie verdwijnen er uit de artiestenstallen? En wie is de volgende?
Interessante passage van fd.nl:
De gevestigde muziekindustrie is de afgelopen jaren gebrek aan creativiteit verweten. De vijf grote platenmaatschappijen (Universal Music Group, Sony Music, EMI, Warner Music Group en BMG) zijn er tot dusver niet in geslaagd een doeltreffend antwoord te vinden op de illegale verspreiding van muziek via internet.
Maar niet alleen digitale piraterij speelt de aanvoerders van de industrie parten. De 'majors', zoals de grote vijf heten, lukt het evenmin voldoende artiesten aan te boren die een groter publiek langer dan één seizoen weten te bekoren.
Vooral dat laatste boeit me. Ligt dat aan de artiesten, het publiek of aan de maatschappijen, vraag ik me dan af...
― Gerrie Spaansen, Monday, 10 November 2003 12:01 (twenty-one years ago)
Je kunt je ook afvragen: is dit geen boude bewering van het FD? Kijk naar Justin Timberlake, de Neptunes, Pink, Dido, Beyoncé/Destiny's Child, allemaal artiesten die in door een groot publiek opgepikt zijn en het bepaald langer dan één seizoen volhouden - en bij majors zitten.
― Guuz H (Guuz H), Monday, 10 November 2003 12:16 (twenty-one years ago)