ARTISTDIRECT PLAYS THE FIELD,
AND TED'S GAME —UPDATE
As part of the deal, ARTISTdirect will fund Field's Radar Records, which will become a 50/50 joint venture.
The agreement stipulates a five-year pact between Field and the netco, and that Field and two of his "designees" would join the company's Board of Directors. Additionally, Field would serve as CEO of the JV Radar.
"I am excited to create this new music platform with the talented team at ARTISTdirect," reads a quote attributed to Field in a release. "A new record label integrated with ARTISTdirect's online distribution and artist services represents a potent combination that will allow us to exploit the full range of opportunities in the music industry."
"We will finalize the joint venture label deal and my employment contract within four to five weeks," Field told hitsdailydouble.com. "I'll be doing 'freshman orientation,' if you will, at ARTISTdirect until then. However, I've already been thinking about personnel for the label. They will be announced shortly after the formation, and we may even have an artist to announce by then. We will make a P&D deal with a major-label group soon.
"The stock price is at 75 cents, and if I'm going to make a play, I wouldn't take on a role if I didn't think I was going to turn a profit over time," Field went on. "They have online and offline ventures in place and a brand name. I think this is a tremendous springboard to bring the business to a point of value."
Field added that he'd mulled other options, but this one enticed him the most. The label, under Field, will eventually have its own promotion staff. ARTISTdirect will provide its infrastructure, which is already in place.
Current Chairman/CEO Marc Geiger will be named Vice Chairman and President of Artist Services and, along with Don Muller, will oversee the talent agency side of the company. Some "artist services" Geiger will supervise are concert booking, A&R, sponsorship deals, database marketing and subscriptions, according to a release.
"Operating a record label has been part of our strategy from the beginning," Geiger told hitsdailydouble.com. "When we realized Ted was available, it came at a time when we had been looking to make moves into content," We wanted a hitter with credibility and a true winner--and if you're going to start a label, who better than Ted Field?"
ARTISTdirect had previously launched a label, Kneeling Elephant, back in February '97, that was marketed and promoted by RCA Records and distributed through BMG before going indie, then under.
"We're an online market leader but in the next year we'll be able to cut costs in the online space," Geiger added. "We've always integrated online and offline activities, but we tended to lean a bit toward the online. Now we want to have a balanced operation." Geiger offered the hope that the newly expanded business model would spark new interest from the financial sector.
Field joins the company from Interscope, which he founded over a decade ago. One of the most successful imprints in music history, it is home to such acts as Limp Bizkit, Eminem, Dr. Dre, U2, the Wallflowers and many others.
Until 1984, Field was a co-owner of Field Enterprises, a major media conglomerate boasting numerous television stations as well as the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper. Subsequent to the liquidation of Field Enterprises, he launched the film company Interscope Communications, which has produced such films as "Mr. Holland's Opus," "Jumanji," "The Hand That Rocks The Cradle" and "Three Men And A Baby."
Field presently also serves as Chairman/CEO of Radar Pictures, a film production company, and his successor to Interscope Communications.
ARTISTdirect stock remained unchanged at 75 cents a share at the close of trading today.
