Up until recent years, the only way music was sold to consumers was by physical media such as records, tapes and CDs. The more music sold, the more the recording industry made, which in-turn should mean more income for the artists. Now with music being widely distributed online as downloads and clips for ringtones, it would seem that this couldn't be a better time for the artists. However, going by this article, it turns out that while the record industry is exploiting more ways to sell and deliver music, the artists end up being left with a very small slice of the sales, even though online distribution eliminates the cost of media replication, running retail stores and shipping.
Now several of Britain's top pop and rock artists including Robbie Williams, Radiohead and Kate Nash are demanding more control over their music. They have teamed up to launch an organisation called the Featured Artists' Coalition to protect the interests of performers and music artists. The aim is to have artists retain the ownership of the copyright of their music, which they would then lease out to their label.
With digital media providing a growing number of ways to sell and use music, the coalition also asks the music industry to explain to its artists how, where and why their music is used as well as to get the artists a larger share of the sales. The coalition will be there to help artists young & old, regardless of how well known they are. So far, some artists fed up with the major record labels have decided to bypass the labels altogether and directly release music online through their websites and social networking sites.
