Emusic

As all long-time eMusic watchers are aware, eMusic’s business model has always been based on the “health club” model, i.e., the assumption that a certain percentage of customers will pay for but not use the service. In eMusic’s case that corresponds to subscribers who download fewer tracks per month than they’re paying for. The result of these unused tracks or digital “breakage” (as Digital Audio Insider refers to the phenomenon) is that the per-track payout from eMusic to labels was somewhat higher than it would be otherwise. That in turn made distribution through eMusic somewhat more attractive to labels than the nominal per-track pricing might otherwise indicate. ...

Given the extent to which Michael Jackson the person was crushed beneath the weight of Michael Jackson the commercial phenomenon, it’s sadly appropriate that his death should allow Sony Music Entertainment and eMusic to conduct a natural experiment in maximizing profits through price discrimination. Jackson’s death has rekindled interest in his music, to the point where Michael Jackson albums now dominate the charts at the iTunes Store and Amazon. As far as I can tell all the Michael Jackson digital releases on the iTunes Store are being sold at full-price; the same is true for Michael Jackson releases in MP3 format at Amazon. Individual Michael Jackson tracks range from $0.99 to $1.29 on both services. ...

In my previous post I lamented the demise of eMusic as I’ve known it, and in preparation for the future discussed my “jobs to be done” related to discovering and listening to music: Casual listening to familiar music at my computer. Casual listening to familiar music when I’m offline. More focused listening to a) familiar and b) less familiar music while driving. Auditioning music for inclusion in my core collection. Here’s how my jobs to be done match up with various digital music products and services being offered today: ...

In less than a month my grandfathered eMusic Basic 2-year plan (40 tracks per month at a cost of $7.49 per month or $0.19 per track) will end, and I’ll face a choice of what to do next. eMusic’s suggestion is that I go for a eMusic Plus Annual plan: 35 tracks per month at a cost of about $14.33 per month or $0.41 per track. However rather than simply going along with an almost doubling in cost of my music buying habit, I’ve decided to rethink how I actually discover and listen to music, and look at additional possibilities beyond eMusic (or to supplement eMusic) that might serve me better at a comparable cost to what I’ve been paying. This also leads to some thoughts on how eMusic could become a better service from my point of view or, alternatively, how a new service could replace eMusic in my affections. ...

Most of the press coverage of the eMusic/Sony agreement has been either regurgitated press releases and echoes of the original New York Times story, or stories about the backlash from eMusic subscribers. I have a standing Google search for “eMusic” and see tons of this stuff. However there is actual smart analysis being done out there, and here are two examples. As seems to be typical nowadays, these are not from traditional media or business journalists but from a blogger turned pro and a musician who blogs. ...