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| July 2004 | The
Monthly Newspaper of the NYSSCPA |
Vol.
7, No.10 |
The Times They Are A-Changin’
Conference Speaker Says Music Business Must Change Too
By Jay Dismukes
The last several years have been tough for the music industry. Modest to sluggish record sales, layoffs at major labels, pirated music and canceled tours haven’t given the embattled industry much cause to celebrate. But according to Rob Light, managing partner for Creative Artists Agency, if the industry is willing to take some chances and allow for innovators and entrepreneurs to fail in order to succeed, there could be a rainbow on the horizon.
Kicking off the Foundation for Accounting Education’s Entertainment and Sports Conference in Manhattan, Light said it’s vital that a closer look be taken at the audience and the delivery model in particular.
For starters, the music industry and the entertainment sector in general should “no longer address the audience as one group.” Instead, they should take their marketing efforts directly to each demographic and pay special attention to their interests, habits and means. Forty dollars for a concert that appeals to teenagers is going to be too high, Light said, but the price will be irrelevant for baby boomers wanting to see Simon and Garfunkel.
In addition to cheaper ticket prices, “fresh life” can also be brought to the concert experience through lower surcharges, parking fees and refreshment costs, permission to bring in coolers and blankets, and the use of Jumbotrons to broadcast entertainment events to more fans, Light said.
Companies also need to stay on top of each new wave of technology, even if it initially appears to “go against the grain of the status quo,” Light added. Embracing technology could include encouraging artists to communicate with fans via e-mail, putting out four-song CDs and tapping the video game market as a means of distributing new music to consumers who otherwise wouldn’t hear it.
“We are a hearbeat away from seeing a generation of artists who don’t sign to labels,” Light said. “Some band that doesn’t have a record deal will say, ‘Put my record out as a game.’”
On a final note, Light pointed out that the greater a CPA’s understanding of the music business—from CD pricing to tour expenses to technological innovations—the more likely that his artist clients will enjoy a prosperous and long career.
