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from the innovating-packaging-and-presentation dept.
U2 and Apple are collaborating on a new, “interactive format for music”, due to launch in “about 18 months”. Bono spoke to Time [paywall] about a new tech scheme which “can’t be pirated” and will reimagine the role of album artwork.
Although initial reports compared the project to Neil Young’s Pono, or to Apple’s early DRM-restricted FairPlay files, Billboard reports that this is a bit of a misunderstanding. “It’s not a new format, but rather a new way to package and present an album,” said an unnamed source “with knowledge of the situation”. “This is focused on creative advances, versus shifts in technology.”
Ultimately, U2’s venture may be much more comparable to iTunes LP, which Apple premiered in 2009. That technology lets artists bundle visuals, interviews, and bonus content with digital album purchases.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 21 2014, @02:07PM
There really is a way to make music non-piratable: Put it in the public-domain.
U2 was soooo close to figuring that out with their Apple release. Apple paid U2 $100M for their latest album and then they gave it away. That was almost the largest example of the ransom model [wikipedia.org] in the real world.
Too bad it sounds like they are retreating from those ideas instead of going all-in.
(Score: 2) by dyingtolive on Sunday September 21 2014, @06:03PM
I kind of wanted to see the look on Bono's smug assho... err, "face" when he found out that people were getting pissed off at receiving U2's music for free. Generally, "you can't even give that away" has never been a positive thing for anyone anywhere looking to sell something.
Don't blame me, I voted for moose wang!
(Score: 2) by EvilJim on Sunday September 21 2014, @11:29PM
relevant anecdote: an old teacher of mine told me of the value of 'free' vs 'paid' his story involved trying to give away a spa pool in the 'free' section of the paper... no one was interested at all... he then listed it for $300 and it sold the first day... sometimes people can be suspicious of anything given away for nothing.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Monday September 22 2014, @01:15PM
Yes, it's a deeply embedded social phenomenon. Perception of value is a very interesting dynamic that economists have been studying for years (and still don't understand). Laffer came up with his famous "Laffer curve" that said, in contravention of traditional economic theory, that in certain cases a higher price can lead to higher, not lower, demand, because it sends a message to customers that the good or service is more desirable.
There is so much material ubiquity in the world now, especially in the industrialized nations, that if that social perception were to shift either through economic pressure or a new, emergent consumption ethos, it would rapidly lead to a cascading series of deflationary spirals. For example, if you had the means to recycle in place material you have and no longer need or want (an old CRT monitor, say), and output new objects you do need and want (a voice-activated tablet for the kitchen to display recipes while you cook and have flour up to your elbows), then the entire economy of China would go *POOF!*
Washington DC delenda est.