RUMOR MILL
Thursday, May 4, 2000
MP3.COM ARTISTS TURN ON MP3.COM
Site’s Policy Of Posting "Payback" Earnings Rubs Bands You've Never Heard Of The Wrong Way
MP3.com member bands are less than pleased that the company is posting how much they make from transactions on the site.
The earnings began appearing on bands' MP3.com home pages Monday as part of a revised "Payback for Playback" program.
The new initiative pays artists based on the number of times visitors to the site listen to their songs.
"I think MP3 dropped the ball by releasing data without consulting the artists," said John Everson of MP3.com band John Called Mark. "They've undermined the trust of all the indie artists that upload music on MP3."
MP3.com lets artists distribute and promote their music at the site, which now contains over 346,000 songs and audio files from more than 56,000 artists.
Announcing the new disclosure program to members, MP3.com CEO michael robertson',390,400);">michael robertson',390,400);">Michael Robertson welcomed an "end to secrets" and invoked the community benefits of sharing the financial information publicly.
The earnings began appearing on bands' MP3.com home pages Monday as part of a revised "Payback for Playback" program.
The new initiative pays artists based on the number of times visitors to the site listen to their songs.
"I think MP3 dropped the ball by releasing data without consulting the artists," said John Everson of MP3.com band John Called Mark. "They've undermined the trust of all the indie artists that upload music on MP3."
MP3.com lets artists distribute and promote their music at the site, which now contains over 346,000 songs and audio files from more than 56,000 artists.
Announcing the new disclosure program to members, MP3.com CEO michael robertson',390,400);">michael robertson',390,400);">Michael Robertson welcomed an "end to secrets" and invoked the community benefits of sharing the financial information publicly.
"I've never liked secrets," he wrote in a message to MP3.com bands and users in advance of the program's launch late last month. "Secrets generally mean somebody's getting screwed. If you don't know who's getting screwed, then it's likely to be you." Robertson characterized the move as a reaction to the policies of the conventional recording industry.
