THE MUSIC INDUSTRY’S PROBLEM: Bad pricing decisions, according to Fritz Schranck:
I certainly don’t think I’m alone in deciding that $18 or so for a CD seems a bit steep, especially considering the quality of much of what passes for popular music lately. Knock the unit price down to $11 or so, however, and it’s much easier for me to decide to buy two or three of ‘em.
The industry continues to blame online and other forms of piracy, but seeing those Kemp Mill crowds readily parting with their cash for the bargain CD prices caused me to think there might be a better explanation.
Who have been the real pirates?
UPDATE: Fritz Schranck gets results:
Universal Music Group, the world’s largest record company, on Wednesday said it will cut list prices on compact discs by as much as 30 percent in an effort to boost sales that have been stymied by free online music-sharing services such as Kazaa.
Starting in October, Universal, the home to such artists as Mary J. Blige (news), U2 and Elton John (news), will trim its prices on most of its CDs to $12.98 from its current $16.98-$18.98 range of prices.
“Our research shows that the sweet spot is to sell our records below $12.98,’ said Universal Music president Zach Horowitz. “We’re confident that when we implement this we will get a dramatic and sustained increase.”
“Research?” I’ll bet some marketing consultant charged them a lot more than it costs to read Fritz’s blog. . . .