The Internet helps
Icelandic musicians to thrive in the music industry slump
9
október, 2003
Icelandic musicians are
thriving despite the global slump in the music industry. They successfully
use the Internet to market themselves internationally and build loyalty
with their fan. They have improved PR and material and services for
fans on their web sites but are not as of yet significantly using the
Internet to facilitate viral marketing. However, a vast majority of
web sites of Icelandic musicians carry MP3 files.
Executive
summary
Factors affecting the music industry in Iceland include the following:
- Consumers have created
a new value curve for the music industry
- Online file sharing
and downloading where copyright holders are bypassed has put the traditional
business model of the music industry in doubt
- Competition for consumers
time, attention and money is increasing
- A vibrant world class
music scene has enabled some Icelandic bands to benefit from online
marketing (which may entirely take place among their fans)
- Packing music CDs
with extra features may not be enough to stem the decline of CD sales
New entrants, easy to
use online music stores which offer flexible pricing structure and quality
downloads that can be played on a variety of devices, are in an excellent
position to exploit the turmoil and eventually redefine the way music
is marketed, purchased and enjoyed. This is a threat to the established
music retailers and labels.
Key
findings from the survey of twenty-five web sites of Icelandic musicians
and comparison with a 2002 survey
- The potential for
viral and peer to peer marketing is left unexplored on the sites.
- Half of the sites
studied had a link to an online store where CDs and in some cases
other merchandise could be bought online
- Six sites achieved
an average score of above 45% (compared to five in 2002)
- The top ranking site
had an average score of 61% (compared to 52% in 2002)
- There are significantly
more features for fans and the media now than in 2002
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