I downloaded The Slip online a few weeks ago. The MP3, FLAC and 24/96 FLAC versions. I'll get this as well. I'm loving this new trend and I hate the anti-piracy witch hunt but I don't quite understand what NIN and others are trying to accomplish with this. Essentially these artists are enabling us to listen to the fruits of their labor for free without asking anything in return. I don't see how this business model is going to work out for ordinary bands. NIN might make their money from the diehard hardcore fans who are willing to order their physical album and collector's editions but an unknown band/artist isn't likely to have that big of a hardcore fanbase. How are the smaller bands going to make money when the majority are going to just get the free download and that's it? But of course I'm not going to complain about free downloads on my end. Thank you Trent Reznor. :D

I don't mean to confirm the RIAA's fears but I admittedly stopped buying albums a few years ago after I figured that I was wasting money that I should be saving for more important things. From a self-interest standpoint, it just didn't make sense to pay $15+ for albums that I've already downloaded, especially if I downloaded FLAC or if the album is from a RIAA label. But if I ever buy another album again, I will support indie artists and labels that respect their fans and don't treat them like crap like the RIAA does.

Originally posted by inagasake:

---

I downloaded The Slip online a few weeks ago. The MP3, FLAC and 24/96 FLAC versions. I'll get this as well. I'm loving this new trend and I hate the anti-piracy witch hunt but I don't quite understand what NIN and others are trying to accomplish with this. Essentially these artists are enabling us to listen to the fruits of their labor for free without asking anything in return. I don't see how this business model is going to work out for ordinary bands. NIN might make their money from the diehard hardcore fans who are willing to order their physical album and collector's editions but an unknown band/artist isn't likely to have that big of a hardcore fanbase. How are the smaller bands going to make money when the majority are going to just get the free download and that's it? But of course I'm not going to complain about free downloads on my end. Thank you Trent Reznor. :D

I don't mean to confirm the RIAA's fears but I admittedly stopped buying albums a few years ago after I figured that I was wasting money that I should be saving for more important things. From a self-interest standpoint, it just didn't make sense to pay $15+ for albums that I've already downloaded, especially if I downloaded FLAC or if the album is from a RIAA label. But if I ever buy another album again, I will support indie artists and labels that respect their fans and don't treat them like crap like the RIAA does.

---

Well it's working right now for NIN since they get free press for doing this. Also, the way I figure, you know for every 1,000 people that download it at least one of them buys it. I think it's just a numbers game. But yeah, if you're a small indie artist or something it's hard just to get 1,000 people to even take the time to listen to your music.

I think it works good for the bands that already got big through the labels, for them to just give away their music for free. It works cause they already have lots of fans anyway that would buy their crap. When they do sell an album they get 100% of the sales instead of just a small fraction. Though I don't know the specifics I've heard they usually get something like $1 of the $15 cd sale. It would seem like they still come out making more that way than by giving it away for free and having purchases be optional.

It seems like right now the only full-time musicians are the one's signed to record labels, and I think that's how it's going to be for a while. Just as the record companies make less and less, then we'll see fewer and fewer people get signed.

i'm just glad to see that the word ninja is still going strong outside of naruto.