First of all you compare value that YOU pay ($1 per song) on iTunes to what CREATOR is paid for on Pandora.
Second of all, Pandora is like radio, not like iTunes. You cannot select song, you have to listen to the ads. The utility of the song on iTunes or CD is very different to the song listened on Pandora.
Thirdly, your assumptions are based on no data and I doubt match reality.
The only fair comparison to Pandora is terrestrial radio, and based on all information we have Pandora pays MORE per spin then average radio station.
> you compare value that YOU pay ($1 per song) on iTunes to what CREATOR is paid for on Pandora.
No, I compared my spending habits on iTunes to Pandora’s subscription costs, and I compared what creators get from iTunes for a track to what Pandora pays creators for a ‘spin’.
It still doesn't make your arguments valid. You yourself are saying that you are comparing 'tracks' vs spins.
Like I said, the UTILITY of both is very different. CD/iTunes track you can copy to other devices, listen offline. Heck, you can even sell your CD. On Pandora you can't even select the song you want to listen to. Because of the fact that you are forced to listen to some songs, average value of song has to be lower. On top of that you get lower quality. You have to listen to ads.
Furthermore, your spending habits are representable only for you and I still believe that you can't just assume that average person plays track they bought only 10 times over the lifetime.
Finally, you cannot forget of all external effects of 'discovery service' that Pandora is. Pandora not only is not replacing iTunes and other ways of purchasing the music, but is helping to increase the sales by exposing you to new artists you would never hear or normal radio.
> you can't just assume that average person plays track they bought only 10 times over the lifetime.
I don’t, I just shared my experience. But let’s say my use is atypical and most consumers listen to a purchased track 1000 times. Then the track’s creators still receive more money per spin from iTunes than from Pandora.
> you cannot forget of all external effects of 'discovery service' that Pandora is. Pandora not only is not replacing iTunes and other ways of purchasing the music, but is helping to increase the sales by exposing you to new artists you would never hear or normal radio.
I believe most of that is true. Let’s hope it gets people to buy more music, not less.
I’m not against Pandora as a service, I think it combines some of the greatest strengths of computers and the Internet. The blogpost was about how they compensate artists, which is what all my comments have been about.
First of all you compare value that YOU pay ($1 per song) on iTunes to what CREATOR is paid for on Pandora.
Second of all, Pandora is like radio, not like iTunes. You cannot select song, you have to listen to the ads. The utility of the song on iTunes or CD is very different to the song listened on Pandora.
Thirdly, your assumptions are based on no data and I doubt match reality.
The only fair comparison to Pandora is terrestrial radio, and based on all information we have Pandora pays MORE per spin then average radio station.