RSSWarner Music CEO: 'We were wrong'
By Ed Oswald | Published November 15, 2007, 2:34 PM
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Edgar Bronfman's comments came as part of a broader talk about mobile music at the GSMA Mobile Asia Congress. He seemed to admit that the industry itself was at fault for the piracy problem that now plagues digital music.
He also warned that the mobile industry needed to improve its offerings in music quickly, or it risked losing its share of revenues to competitors including Google and Apple. Both companies are moving into the mobile space, and they could catch a mobile industry that isn't paying attention to what consumers want and need.
Bronfman's admission that a state of war exists between consumers and publishers of digital music, is the first public comment of its kind by any executive in the industry. Up until now, officials had pointed the finger solely at consumers, saying their actions were only necessary to protect their own interests.
Indeed, the head of Warner Music is even contradicting his own record. After heavily criticizing Apple's iTunes and suggesting dropping digital rights management would be foolish only a few short months ago, Bronfman had nothing but nice things to say about Apple at the conference.
He suggested that mobile operators follow the lead of iTunes and create compelling content packages for consumers, and get away from the "boring, banal and basic" music offerings available now.
"We used to think our content was perfect just exactly as it was," he told attendees. "We expected our business would remain blissfully unaffected even as the world of interactivity, constant connection and file sharing was exploding. And of course we were wrong."
On the DRM front, Warner has begun to sell DRM-free tracks on its own digital store, possibly indicating that the same options may be available to consumers through iTunes and other outlets in the future.
Sounds like he's only telling us what we want to hear. I honestly can't believe what these schmucks in the Music and Movie industry say. We may as well face the grim fact that DRM is here to stay and absolutely NOTHING is going to change it. There is always some jackass that believes all consumers should be treated as criminals. I for one find the whole concept of DRM insulting.
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"Be open for change" - I got that from a fortune cookie, now I'm giving it to you!
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oh I'm open to change it's just that these kind of people never change. They say what you want to hear to your face then stab you in the back.It's always been this way and always will.
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Ultimately, this means nothing.
DRM isn't going away and These people are NOT going to stop. You will do it their way or not do it at all. ALL forms of entertainment belong to them. You will have only one choice. Do it or not.
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Actually, from this article it does seem that DRM is kinda going away. It says Time Warner is selling DRM-free tracks and iTunes has suggested it also.
Also, utlimately, this indicates a big change in the paradigm of Time Warner and possibly other labels.
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I guess that he is seeing which side the bread is being buttered now....
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I'm an optimist. I think this is a brave first step toward meeting consumers' wants and needs. There is an awesome book on this subject called The Starfish And The Spider. If I had the money, I'd mail a copy to every single musician and record label executive in the hope that they'd understand the real situation they're in. I believe it's possible for consumers and record labels to meet in the middle, and I believe most people will treat record labels fairly if the labels treat them fairly. It'll take some effort for the members of Riaa to convince people that they're calling off the witch hunts though. Still, a girl can hope. :)
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DRM is the future. In order to gain temporary advantage over DRM-only competitors, companies can flood the market with non-DRM content to grab some consumer attention. Then, slowly slowly, the DRM-over-nonDRM ratio will increase. In 10-20 years all content producers will ONLY produce in DRM. It's clearly in their interest to get paid under THEIR terms. Don't like the terms (not fair? price too high? too restrictive?), don't buy...
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Hahahaha. It's Chuck Norris
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Apparently kicking his own ass.
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Facing reality.
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Admitting there's a problem is the first step to a solution. Its good to see someone take a step back and look at what's going on and see that something just isn't right.
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Amen. I could say something callous like "Why didn't you notice this two years ago, you idiot", but progress is progress, and it takes guts to stand up and say "hey, what we're doing doesn't work."
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I agree!
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...and I agree with you too!
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Duh!
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