Why can't we all just get along? Okay, let'sget right to the punch line… the government is taki... Record Promotion… A Lost Art
Why can't we all just get along? Okay, let'sget right to the punch line… the government is taking all the fun out ofrecord promotion. Plain and simple! Just when labels thought it was safe topromote directly to radio, along comes an investigation by the New York StateAttorney General's office of epic proportions. The investigation picked upsteam early this year, altering a relationship that had already beendramatically reshaped in the preceding twelve to fifteen months by the radio andmusic industries distancing themselves from independent promotion firms.
Major radio groups said then, and are stillsaying now, ‘we discontinued our relationships with independent promo firms tosuspend any appearance of impropriety.' How could record labels continue theuse of indies (in the same fashion) when some of the larger radio groupsessentially forbade the relationship? They couldn't. Not to the extent that itwas as meaningful as it was in the past. Meaningful to the extent of payinglarge annual fees for the rights to have radio's music adds announced by therepresenting indie of a specific radio station or radio group.
As indies drifted from the scene of recordpromotion these last two years, label execs became much more hands on with radiorelationships. They were literally forced to, but this was not a bad thing. Mostpromotion departments have always worked closely with radio anyway. But now,promo rep to promo rep, local to local, national to national, all had to tightentheir respective holds on radio because there was no longer a safety net onTuesday afternoons.
It must be stated for the record that most musicexecs do not want to see indies disappear. They did, however, want tosee the system that was draining their promo budgets eradicated. After all,the indie corporate arrangement of its day (from the label's perspective) wasa flawed system from inception. But, labels did not want to see honestrelationships that legitimately existed between indies and stations dry up. Butsome of those relationships would. It was now strict policy. It must also bestated for the record that indie firms still exist where permitted by radio,with most of the work being retainer oriented.
Last fall, out of nowhere, an investigationparachuted down on the record industry. At first there were rumors andquiet whispers about a pending investigation. Then as we rung in 2005, alongcame a dose of reality. The rumors turned into fact. There was indeed aninvestigation into record industry practices. The man leading the charge was NewYork State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. The same man whotook big bites out of the insurance industry, Wall Street and the mutual fundindustry. Spitzer's modus operandi is to discipline big business…investigate, find wrongdoing, levy big fines and enact sweeping policy changeswithin the targeted industry. It's not about litigation. It's all about theinvestigation, the threats, the restitution and the headlines. It's onehelluva power play to diffuse for any industry, especially given the high technature of the AG's investigation. Head for the hard drives.
So where has it left the music business? Allrecord promotion investigations in the past were typically met head on byindependent promo firms. That's where the rubber hit the road with promotionand where the emphasis on promo practices was traditionally placed. Thiscurrent/ongoing investigation took a different course. With the indies profilelargely mitigated, label reps became the first line of defense. I'm nothere to rehash what has already been uncovered and reported (ad nauseam) as aresult of the investigation, but the net effect promises to change an industryforever.
Due in part to this investigation, andconsidering the FCC implications, radio has reinforced their commitment to cleanliving, and many broadcast companies have instituted new policies regardingrelationships with their partner record industry. Several of these new policieshave label execs scratching their heads. It's all about the boundaries andwhat constitutes fair and legal play, and what is suspicious. It appears thatthe fair and legal play doctrine is shrinking practically every week.Conversations with record execs reveal that they are both perplexed and angeredby the new rules. Many in the record biz feel the industry was unfairlypersecuted and wished it would be fairly prosecuted. Many feel their practicesare defensible, that they are indeed fair and within the boundaries of the law.They also feel they are quite similar to marketing and promotion practices inseveral other industries, specifically, industries that affect product placementin just about every retail store you enter, not to mention the courting thepharmaceutical firms engage with the medical profession when pushing newmedications. Some record execs feel there's been an uncontested and sweepingconcession of any and all changes to promotion practices, rendering theirprofession limited at best and somewhat non-competitive.
We are in times of drastic change, practicallyquarter-year to quarter-year. Both music industry and broadcast execs alike areunanimous in this sentiment. Each industry has their own set of extraneousconcerns that affect their core assets in competitive ways. This challenge isthe natural order of life in corporate America today. Especially when you are inthe business of entertaining, providing content and attempting to pace popculture. The marriage of compelling content and technologically driven deliverysystems is not for the faint of heart. You can't continue to chase yourfuture. You have to ultimately grow and evolve your business model.
The radio industry is currently confronting theissues of the day on their terms and has become competitively proactive in theirvision path design. The record industry has displayed an attitude of defianceand aggressiveness regarding their respective challenges as well, and isdevising strategies that break down traditional paradigms. But, the prevailingnotion of the day is that the record industry would like more of an even playingfield when it comes to defending the turf that has played such a prominent rolein breaking and establishing so many artists over the years. Not to mention aprofession that many people have dedicated their careers to. However, they justmay never get their day in court.
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