Direct selling

I called it [let me look for the linky to my old blog / mailing list].

Music artists are eschewing record labels and selling their stuff directly to their audiences. In a move that is similar to what Radiohead or Nine Inch Nails are doing, some US acts have struck a deal directly with Wal-Mart to sell their self-produced albums. And while this may not stem the tide of file sharing and piracy, it ensures that more money goes into the artists' pockets.

The rift between artists and those of us who download or buy pirated discs is an artificial one concocted by the middlemen who make the most money out the deal. And while they were necessary in producing vinyl records and CDs up until the mid 90s, they are slowly becoming as irrelevant as stagecoach drivers in the digital age. When recording a decent album can be done in one's bedroom and the tracks sold via websites, the need for a large company to market and distribute music diminishes.