All Entries in the "Sideways Is the New Up" Category
Sex Sells: Erykah Badu and Lady Gaga Get Naked To Move Units
Using T & A to sell music isn’t new, but it is effective. Erykah Badu and Lady Gaga use it in somewhat different ways, or do they?
Is Commercial AAA Radio Lost?
Not long ago, Commercial AAA Radio had at least three killer apps — a music mix you couldn’t find anywhere else, curators helping people discover new music, and a local focus. All three are increasingly rare…
Lesson from Magazines: Cut Subscription Rates and Lose Subscribers Anyway
With media business models up in the air, here’s more evidence that the “Free” model is seriously flawed: 75% of magazines that cut their subscription rates lost subscribers anyway…
Terra (in)Firma: The Amazing Backstory of the EMI Debacle
Why did Guy Hands and his buyout firm Terra Firma pay $8 billion for EMI in 2007? Ego may be one answer, but another may because Citigroup dealmakers lied to him. Hands was bidding against himself…
Have the Wheels Come Off John Mayer?
As if the Rolling Stone interview wasn’t bad enough, in John Mayer’s Playboy interview, he drops the N-word, talks about his racist penis, and otherwise dares his fans to continue liking him…
Forrester Research Publishes Ugly Graph: Music Sales Cut in Half in Last Decade
Kind of like a car wreck– it’s ugly but you can’t help but look. Music sales plunged from more than $14 billion to $6.3 billion in the last ten years. Why this is bad for radio, as well as the TV, film, and publishing industries…
Spotlight: Who Was That Dude Singing With Justin Timberlake?
Matt Morris was passed over by every record label, and as of this writing, still has no distribution deal beyond Amazon and iTunes. That is likely to change…
Link of the Week: Paste and New York Times Try Out New Revenue Streams
We’ve been arguing that, without multiple revenue streams, most media properties are cooked. Read how Paste came back from the dead, and how The New York Times attempts to stay afloat…
Is NPR The Next Radiohead?
With a digital strategy, Radiohead successfully ditched the middleman. NPR has the potential to do the same. Could it all backfire? You betcha…
Terra Firma Says Citigroup’s Pants Are on Fire; We May Actually Own EMI
Terra Firma is suing Citigroup, saying they lied about the status of their EMI buyout — causing them to overpay. Hmm, overpaying? Banker shenanigans? Since we bailed out Citigroup, don’t we own EMI?
Sideways is the New Up: Citadel Heads to Bankruptcy – Shareholders Lose Again
A surprise to no one, Citadel is headed toward a pre-arranged banckruptcy — just the latest in the series of “screw the shareholders” episodes on Wall Street. Expect many more…
“The Ad Recession is Likely Permanent”: The Case for Revenue Diversification
Too many owners and operators believe that once the economy comes back, the radio business will bounce back too. More and more people disagree, meaning that those without diversified revenue streams are doomed…
MTV Returns to the Dumpster and New Jersey May Never Recover
Not six months ago, citing the Obama victory, MTV announced a new programming strategy that promised to feature positive and socially conscious messages. What have they come up with? I got ya answa right heeere…
The Top 22 Tastemaker Songs: 10-18-09
David Gray still holds the #1 position, with indie-rocker Norah Jones this week’s big mover, debuting at #7…
Two Magazines: One With Common Sense. Let’s Learn!
Brides’ “Big Flower Issue!” may be followed by “The Big Train Wreck Issue!” Meanwhile, Mike Bloomberg buys BusinessWeek and plans on kickin’ it old school. Lessons for radio…
Thanks to the Web, Marketing Mistakes Never Go Away
This gem of an ad for Burger King’s Super Seven Incher (honest!) recalls a similar mistake from McDonalds, and offers a cautionary tale for all of us in a world where missteps live online forever…
