

Fred Wilson: Some Thoughts On The Louis CK "Experiment" - cwan
http://www.avc.com/a_vc/2011/12/some-thoughts-on-the-louis-ck-experiment.html

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TomOfTTB
Either everything I've ever learned about business is wrong or he is misusing
the term business model.

I was always taught a business model is essentially a corporate version of a
scientific hypothesis. Meaning it has to be defined and tested in a way that
can be repeated by others

(successful business models can fail if the people using them don't execute
them properly but that's the equivalent of a scientist not reproducing the
environment of an experiment properly)

In the case of Louis C.K. his celebrity filled a very important aspect of the
business model which is "the method by which customers are enticed to pay for
the goods being delivered". Mr. Wilson tries to gloss over that by saying...

"over time, if their work is good, their audience will grow and the
investments they can make and the profits they can make will increase."

But that's not proven by what Louis C.K. did and in fact there's tons of proof
on the internet that shows it isn't the case (it isn't hard to find
undiscovered talent on the internet). Moreover the situation will only get
worse over time. As more people try what Louis C.K. did it will add more noise
to the already noisy internet making the true talent that much harder to find.

Companies like record labels originally existed because society needed middle
men. People who would pay A&R reps to go to clubs every night and find talent.
Then the label would deliver that talent to the masses. If you really want to
make the Louis C.K. model into a business model everyone can use the question
that needs to be answered is....

"how do you use technology to find the talent and then connect it to people
who want to consume it?"

And Louis C.K.'s experiment does nothing to answer that.

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dgreensp
One step at a time. If we can all agree on the apparently
controversial/notable fact that _selling your content to fans for money_ is a
viable business _for a famous person_ , we are finally making steps towards a
better world for artists and consumers.

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jpdoctor
I love the fact that Louis CK disintermediated like a star.

However, there is a reason it worked: The Hollywood/NYC advertising machine
spent a lot of dollars to cause his name recognition. (Most likely, they
profited handsomely too.) But now he has taken that name recognition and cut
them out of the deal.

So it is very predictable what happens next: Future studio contracts will
return to the days where the studios own all of your output for a period of
time in return for promoting you.

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dasil003
This doesn't make sense unless all the top talent rolls over like they did 70
years ago because they didn't know any better. Why do you think studios
stopped owning talent decades ago? Because talent wised up. The studios can't
be the studios with second-rate talent, but that's what they'll get if they
don't negotiate fairly. In short, they don't have the leverage.

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jpdoctor
> _The studios can't be the studios with second-rate talent_

Combine:

1\. There is always a pipeline of new talent,

2\. Businesses do not invest without a return.

So either the studios are going to lock in a return, or the studios are going
to go away and the entertainment industry is going to fragment into a million
pieces.

As much as I'd like to see the second case, my guess is that there are enough
starving actors that they will sign up for long-term owned-output contracts.

~~~
dasil003
And they got their return. Are you trying to say they spent more than they
made off Louis CK? This is a weak argument for how they're going to turn back
the clock.

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md1515
I think this business model is similar to that of the self-publishing model.

The two main parties in any published work are 1) the author and 2) the
reader. The publisher, agent, distributor (book store) etc. are all
intermediaries that have increased the cost of books for the reader AND
decreased the money earned for the author (therefore restricting many authors'
artistic contributions). With websites like creativespace.com authors can now
publish self-publish with many fewer middle-men - therefore making the price
lower and the net gain to the author higher.

The same applies for Louis CK's experiment. I assume his industry is pirated
more than the print publications so that is the real trick. Either way, great
experiment.

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rmason
I think the most interesting part of the post was in the comments when Fred
highlighted an up and coming star using the web for distribution.

Freddie Wong is starting an episodic series. He raised the production money on
KickStarter:

[http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/freddiew/video-game-
high...](http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/freddiew/video-game-high-school)

Can you imagine how more interesting the web will get when the next Lucille
Ball can go direct to the fans? All that is needed is a way to easily consume
media from the web on the big screen.

Forget 500 channels, how about 5 billion channels!

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mkramlich
> an you imagine how more interesting the web will get when the next Lucille
> Ball can go direct to the fans?

agreed. and already happening. I've discovered several hilarious talented
women on YouTube, total amateurs, yet more entertaining than most generic
Hollywood mass produced actresses. And these women can all now control their
message and work and charge fans directly for premium content, get advertising
revenue, etc. The next Lucy's and Oprah's may already exist now and they've
started their little empires on YouTube.

~~~
3lit3H4ck3r
>The next Lucy's and Oprah's may already exist now and they've started their
little empires on YouTube.

Just imagine all of the talent that (prior to the web,youtube blogs, _fill in
the blank web based distribution model of your choice here_ ) gave up because
someone in media never thought they would "sell".

Truly is a great time to be alive, both for the artist and the folks that love
good content.

Viva Le Web!

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piggity
I demand that the existing media conglomerate distribution model be left in
place so that I may be told what is worth "consuming" and who I should look up
to as a star.

