New Label Team Love’s Business Plan Based On Free Downloads

BusinessWeek magazine and in it’s online edition have published a series of short articles on indy record label Team Love who use the internet and viral marketing to realease and promote their releases. Instead of suing downloaders, virtually every track Team Love releases can also be downloaded for free (sometimes in live or alternative versions). Sound crazy? It’s working.

An excerpt: “While the record industry has been waging war against the Net and music pirates for years — arguing that such forces might destroy their business — a fresh crop of artists is taking the opposite approach. Team Love, Tilly, and many others are embracing technology and using it in innovative ways. And this, even more than illegal downloaders, has the potential to recast the industry. That’s because the Net frees musicians from the need for major labels, allowing them to market themselves by giving away their music and to communicate with fans through message boards and blogs. “The Internet changes the dynamic,” Oberst says. “It takes away the marketing advantage that the big labels have and gives people a chance to listen to music they couldn’t hear on the radio or get in a Wal-Mart (WMT ).”

READ THE FULL ARTICLES:
Kissing Off The Big Music Labels – Team Love has a new approach to selling its CDs: Give away free downloads
Online Extra Article.
Interview With A Young Fan.