Cuban's initial e-mail suggested that had he bought Napster, he would have moved it offshore to shield the company from digital copyright restrictions that make it a crime to circumvent technologies that protect copyrighted material such as songs.

Where have you heard that before? :) This is where I first heard it. Believe or not but I actually had someone dig up Cuban's email address and I emailed him about our plans to setup an offshore Opennap server but alas he never got back to me.

Anyhow. He would have been the perfect Napster owner. He would have had the balls to move it offshore or to stay and fight the good fight. But instead we have Bertlesmann who have reportedly sunk $100mil into it and it's gone nowhere. Even the brand is now worthless.
10:50:26 PM   []

First up we have Steven Page lead singer of the Barenaked Ladies writing a very accessible article on 'The barenaked truth of the music business'. Unfortunately it's one those stories that the Globe hasn't put online. But let me recap his explanation of concert ticket prices (all figures USD):

$10.75 - base price of cheapest ticket
+ $3.25 facility fee (to rent facilities that ClearChannel (the promoter) already owns)
+ $3.25 parking fee
+ $8.75 Ticketmaster convenience fee
+ $3.50 Ticketmaster handling fee
= $29.50

Plus the venue gets 30-40% of merchandise sales and 100% of food & drink.

He also talks about radio play and radio sponsored concerts. On how much the artist gets from CD sales:

We really are all just label employees, without the benefits. As rich as you think some of us are, for every $18.99 CD you buy, the artist usually sees [$2] or so. Pay your producer out of that. Then your manager. Then split it five ways among your band mates. Now don't act surprised when you the drummer of a platinum-selling Canadian rock band behind the drive-thru window at Tim Hortons.

There was also an article entitled Indies may hold key to the future and talks about how indies are going to lead the way since they know how to run a lean mean record machine unlike the bloated labels.

The best is this quote from Terry McBride who manages Steven's Barenaked Ladies:

CD burners are a massive problem. Talk to any kid. Someone who buys a CD when it comes out on Tuesday has sold five copies at five bucks a pop by Friday.

10:22:13 AM   []