Punknews.org

|
Sign In | create an account

MTV calls 2007 "The Year The Music Industry Broke"

Posted by aubin on Monday, December 17, 2007 at 6:00 PM (EST)

As the end of the year approaches, it's time for the appropriate amount of reflection. The latest look back on the previous year comes from MTV who seem ready to write the music industry's obituary. Their new article examines the declining power of the major label, and examines some high profile defections including Trent Reznor, Madonna and (of course) Radiohead.

According to Nielsen SoundScan, album sales were down 15 percent from 2006 (a trend that's continued for eight straight years now); big-name artists jumped ship in increasingly complicated - and messy - ways; and the powers-that-be seemed to get even more heartless and disconnected, thanks to a series of lawsuits, feuds and terrible decisions.

You can check out the feature here.

Those of you in the industry should start figuring out the grand idea that will save music, those of you in this band's t-shirt can probably start gloating.

Games and Technology (72 comments)

Please login or register to post comments.What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?

Share your opinion by posting comments on the stories that interest you
Rate music and bands and help shape the weekly top ten
Let Punknews.org use your ratings to help you find bands and albums you might like
Customize features on the site to get the news the way you want.

Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way. Seriously.

NoControl (December 17, 2007)

I still buy cd's.

9+ Replies

The4footpartysub (December 17, 2007)

me too... probably more than i ever have in the past.

J4M35 (December 17, 2007)

ya definitely, gotta get them at shows though.

Cottage_Cheese (December 17, 2007)

Obviously you haven't been buying enough. The record industry expects you to buy at least 10-15 new records a month in order for them to get back on track.

drunkenriot (December 17, 2007)

I may meet that quota seriously...

The4footpartysub (December 17, 2007)

haha, yeah same here

dlangl4 (December 17, 2007)

Me too, and as soon as I get out in the real world with a nice job I'm gonna be spending a whole lot more. It's one thing I'm really looking forward to.

FuckYouOiOiOi (December 17, 2007)

but not from major labels.

right?

jacknife737 (December 17, 2007)

Me too, in fact i haven't even downloaded (not even to sample) in months....

scndl (December 18, 2007)

Where "The Industry" fails is by seeing the truth behind the term "Supply and Demand", if they keep supplying us with crappy cds their sales will continue in the same direction. I bet most people here buy the CDs they think are worth having and not every single westside rapper/ high school dramaqueen cd just because they had to hear how it sounds like.

When are "The Industry" going to learn?

(The day I learn to write proper english?…)

dX927 (December 18, 2007)

This is the first year that I haven't bought a ton of CDs. I can't even remember the last one I bought for myself actually. Just haven't been a ton of releases from bands that I like. Then half of the time I'll see it somewhere and realize how much cheaper I can get it online and don't wind up feeling motivated enough to hit into my checking account.

sugarfull (December 17, 2007)

Who cares?

1+ Reply

TopFlightFuckinSecurity (December 17, 2007)

VIDEO KILLER THE RADIO STAR....internet killed the video star.

reality tv killed mtv...as it sucked anyway

JerryCola (December 17, 2007)

Dinosaurs will die

4+ Replies

YasserBossin (December 17, 2007)

....then rise again as zombie dinosaurs

chirpy_boy (December 17, 2007)

Dinosaurs are a myth. DUH. kudos for bad NOFX reference.

FuckYouOiOiOi (December 17, 2007)

todays empires tomorrows ashes

victim (December 17, 2007)

today we are embers, tomorrow we ignite the world

translation: today we smoke pot, tomorrow we vote for Ronald Reagan

Cthulhu (December 17, 2007)

Doesn't matter...they're secretly working on music that you can directly put to your veins through your mp3player and sell it as party-drug

shot_in_the_dark (December 17, 2007)

I've slowed my downloading by about 99%, but I don't think I'll start buying anything in stores until the industry heads start treating their artists better. Forget the Writers Guild, musicians need to do some sort of protest. Until then I'll only buy things at shows; some guy in some band told me that the record companies can't touch most of that.

2+ Replies

oncepure (December 17, 2007)

For smaller label bands, and even Fat I believe, bands have to buy their cds from the record label themselves, so I guess you can take that as it is...

thinkDIY (December 17, 2007)

"The Industry" is a very broad term. Those of us that are staunchly independent and treat artist's well, should not be lumped in the same catagory as greedy record execs, to boycott the whole "industry" would do more than harm the labels, it would cause a lot of all of our favorite bands to go completely broke, and go back to corporate mainstream jobs, (in which they will be taken advantage of etc) which would really defeat the purpose of any type of "protest" or boycott.

Support labels that support their artist's, and do it dilligently, if people want to see the future of independent rock n' roll stay afloat.
As long as people keep downloading music for free, or even if they pay for it off of sites like I-tunes who pay bands and labels a mere fraction of what you get for hard copy sales, it will keep declining until artist's can no longer afford to tour,

show rest of comment

HOISTDATRAG (December 17, 2007)

666

2+ Replies

FuckYouOiOiOi (December 17, 2007)

oi! oi! oi!

usversusthem (December 18, 2007)

you missed the 'l's at the end.

Sherlock_28 (December 17, 2007)

Why do we care what MTV says about the music industry again?

2+ Replies

allison_le_gnome (December 17, 2007)

Exactly.

J4M35 (December 17, 2007)

it's true though.

Dante3000 (rich) (December 17, 2007)

The irony is that MTV is virtually not impacted at all by this, as they stopped showing music videos in the mid-90's. Apparently, the shift to reality TV, Cribs and all things Nick Cannon was a long thought out survival plan by MTV for this eventual day.
-Dante

5+ Replies

eDWeiRD (December 17, 2007)

Of course you beat me to the punch on that one, sir. Although I would further argue that MTV hasn't really paid much attention to music since shortly after it's birth.

Jimbojones (December 17, 2007)

How a channel can only play 2 hours of music for a whole day and be called Music Television is beyond me. I consider it just TV or Gimpvision

MsJustinChris (December 17, 2007)

Isn't MTV controlled by Viacom? If so, they should call themselves Viacom TV.

canaandrumzz (December 17, 2007)

Despite questionable music and movie choices, I absolutely love Nick Cannon when he is on Wild'n out. If that show is on I stop everything and watch it until they move on to something else. It introduced to Katt Williams who is funnier than most people's favorite comedian. Good job MTV, you beat the system by disregarding it.

damnitsderek (December 22, 2007)

It's a poor man's Who's Line Is It Anyway.

That show is seriously fucking terrible.

ibitchslappedyourmama (December 17, 2007)

I don't agree that this is the year that the 'industry broke', but they do make some good points. I think within in the next 2 years the industry will definitely be 'broken'.

J4M35 (December 17, 2007)

i've always believed that the best way to support an (active) band is to go see them in concert and buy their merch.

3+ Replies

Cottage_Cheese (December 17, 2007)

You could always just put a $100 bill in their tip jar. They seem to love it whenever I do it.

J4M35 (December 17, 2007)

is that your per diem?

victim (December 17, 2007)

Take that act to a strip club already

Holy_Hack_Ben (December 17, 2007)

I haven't seen any music on MTV in a long long time, so is their opinion even valid?

Problematiclogic (December 17, 2007)

For a split second, I read that as 'MTV calls 2007 "The Year of Bomb the Music Industry!"'

I have selective reading sometimes.

kpave (December 17, 2007)

Who cares? This is coming from MTV and I for one think they're full of of shit

2+ Replies

telegraphrocks (December 17, 2007)

I for seven think they're full of shit....

Me > you? Maybe.... just, maybe.

kpave (December 18, 2007)

hahaha you cant be serious?

thebiglebowski (December 17, 2007)

Did the Defiance Ohio LP get delayed? My order can today, but that record wasn't in it.

1+ Reply

kennyh_2004 (December 17, 2007)

I got mine

Cuffer (December 17, 2007)

Good.

Oh and also, you did it to yourself.

Keep promoting terrible terrible music and ripping people off.

Bunch of Fucks.

eightpackofpilsner (December 17, 2007)

I'm not in the music industry... maybe that's why I can't see how this affects the me (the average music fan).

HeresLookinAtYou (December 17, 2007)

MTV writing an article about the decreasing influence of the music industry is a joke within itself.

jibber (December 17, 2007)

Does anybody actually watch MTV anymore? I've seen a decline not only in MTV, but also in Much Music in Canada, and MTV in Australia. And that doesn't mean any of them were great to begin with.

deancurran623 (December 17, 2007)

good, it's about time. i still buy CDs, but not from so-called "industry labels." To think the industry freaked out 25 years ago about home taping

chirpy_boy (December 17, 2007)

We all knew it was coming, and it was here before that article. Hip hip! Hooray!

AnalogArkives (December 17, 2007)

Die, Die!

1+ Reply

Dante3000 (rich) (December 17, 2007)

Settle down Beavis.

eunomi (December 17, 2007)

I'm glad to see others picked up on the irony of MTV declaring the death of the music industry.

fallingupwards84 (December 17, 2007)

you are the industry you fuckers

dontwantaname (December 17, 2007)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=M-e7VjerzjY

hitlerbadzakgood (December 18, 2007)

i'm calling 1981 the year that killed the radio star.

dontforgetjosh (December 18, 2007)

Who says that it's broken?
How about augmented?
The problem is the major record label execs fear change because it probably means less money for the greedy SOBs.

And further more, if you are going to call "college students who download music 'criminals'", you should also call anyone who has ever photocopied a book that they didn't pay for a criminal too, those photocopying criminal bastards.

Also, what? Since when is MTV so impacted by the music industry? You know, with all the music videos they play. The only thing MTV still needs the music industry for is to make rich people so they can show us their houses that are nicer than mine. I mean, yes I realize that is not the only thing they need them for. I'm sure there are plenty of other uses too, like making reality shows so we can that they have more money than us, and theme music, you can

show rest of comment

InstantDharma (December 18, 2007)

I love how you idiots are bitching about MTV. Just because their network sux, doesn't mean they can't state the obvious. As I said in another thread, you guys got what you wanted: the death of the music industry. It's going to be all about playing live now, and bands are going to stop making albums.

5+ Replies

ilivefaster (December 18, 2007)

"...bands are going to stop making albums. "

Hahaha you're crazy and that's what's endearing about you.

InstantDharma (December 18, 2007)

aww, what a naive little dumbass you are. Too bad you aren't bright enough to understand the way things are trending. Bands are going to stop recording albums and make people come to their shows to hear new music. That's what you guys want, right? Or did your little utopian fantasy end at the point where the band just throws a lot of money down the drain recording, pressing, and promoting a record just so you could be entertained for free?

By only allowing people to hear their new music at shows, bands will have better attended tours, and be able to charge more for tickets; thus making up for the money they used to make selling records.

You can try and kill the messenger all you want, but this is what's in store for the future.

HouseRecipe (December 18, 2007)

Deja Vu. . .

http://www.punknews.org/comment/939424/26977/939302#939424

InstantDharma (December 18, 2007)

yup. the truth hurts, doesn't it?

Banger (December 19, 2007)

Wow, I think you're right! Everyone will stop recording music and make people go to their concerts!

But waitaminute...

How are they going to get people to come see their concerts if no one knows what their music sounds like?

Oh, I got it! This is gonna sound crazy, but bear with me...

They can record music and put it on teh internets!

SlackMFr (December 18, 2007)

MTV is still on the air? Who watches that garbage? Literally who does??

MadCow (December 18, 2007)

Well, if MTV say it, it must be true.

imaloser (December 18, 2007)

there are other mtv stations that play a lot of music videos, even though they suck

JohnnyZ77 (December 18, 2007)

MTV also called 2007 the year all slutty actresses showed off their cooches. Wish that never happened. Put on some underwear girls!

NicePipes (December 18, 2007)

I haven't bought CDs in forever. What's the point when you can download them? The money I would spend on CDs I just spend of T-Shirts or concert tickets or something practical like food, healthcare, transportation, or textbooks. So bands get the same total amount of money from me anyway. CDs are a method for corporations to own the work that talented people make. We live in a digital age, why are we still distributing digital media via physical means?

1+ Reply

jacknife737 (December 18, 2007)

Some people like the whole product, ie booklet, linear notes, etc. I personally have trouble getting "emotionally attached" to a mp3.... as well , not everyone has access to a computer/ high speed internet, but they still want to listen to music. Oh, and remember not every label is owned by a "corporation". And lets not even mention how most of these mp3's are fairly low quality......

karmabad (December 18, 2007)

well its not as if MTV helped the fact AT ALL! When's the last time you saw MTV actually play a video? talk about HORRIBLE programming on their part. Hey MTV, fuck you!

http://thisblogisover.wordpress.com/

Features

Exclusive Streams

see more streams

Newest Reviews

see more reviews

Punknews.org Team

Other Places to Go

Punknews.org Flickr Pool

View All Photos