Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
I’m not a big fan of #1, Tbone. It just seems wrong to me to give up tracks exclusively forever with no upfront money. That being said, it’s obvious that many composers make money off these deals and maybe accepting some risk is just part of the business.
I don’t think this gentlemen ever indicated that he was going to give away everything and hope his company gets 50% of the publishing with no synch fees etc.
I never said Eclipse was planning to do these crappy deals. And you are correct, they are not the norm, but they are out there and *could* be starting a very dangerous trend. My point was only just how difficult it may be to make revenue in this market (unscripted reality TV) based on the competition.
Also, Eclipse, if you come back on. I am not at all on your case here. There may be a lot I don’t understand from your one post about this.
I will say that it raises a red flag with me whenever someone says they are starting a library and they ask composers what *THEY* would want to see in that library. Just seems bass-ackwards from the get go.
Again, if I am all wet here I apologize for the Debbie Downer thing.
Starting a business is like commercial songwriting. Don’t write what you want to say, write what a buying audience wants to hear. So, it’s important not to start a business based on what the seller(s) wants but what buyers need and want.
Think of what you can do that’s unique and different for the music sups. What would set you apart from the rest from THEIR perspective? As I mentioned, in the cable reality TV market, competing on price may be a lost cause. It’s hard to compete price-wise with giving the production company a gratis blanket license and a share in the publishing.
Yes, you most likely end up giving a chunk to the shows’ producers.
The very fact that this practice is happening more and more shows what a tough market it is to compete in.
Not really. Composers worry too much.
C’mon D_I… It’s not a matter of “worrying”. Would you start a library with no revenue coming in and pay a service to tag the composer’s tracks out of your own pocket? How much would YOU be willing to shell out before making a penny? Just things to think about.
I’m certainly not saying no one could jump in this game and make money. But whenever one considers venturing into a new business they should study current market trends, potential revenue, how many hours a week they can put into it, how soon they need to at least break even to survive, etc.
I think hiring a professional keywording service would be a great idea. As a musician it’s sometimes hard for me to write a catchy description and keyword effectively. A lot of times I have a particular “vision” of how I think the music would be used but in reality it could be better suited for something all together.
It’s great to create a dream list but keep in mind that a startup venture probably won’t see any significant revenue for years. So, it isn’t easy to give the composers everything they want: the ideal deal, do all the work of descriptors and tagging, etc. Not knocking it if you can do it!
The other thing to consider is just how crowded the reality TV background cue market is right now and how tight the providers of music are being squeezed. More and more they are even asked to give up some of their publishing revenue just to get the music placed. That’s a terrible practice but the problem is you’ll be competing with other players who will do anything to get their music used.
Also, I think approaching things from what COMPOSERS want as opposed to what clients want (it’s the clients who will pay your bills) might be problematic.
I may be coming off as a Debbie Downer here but MHO is this is one of the worst businesses to enter at this point in time.
That all being said, nothing would please me more than to see you get in there and succeed.
🙂Finally we know who Michael L really is!!! 😀
Just razzin’ ya, ML.
😉
Same thing here. My guess is it’s a glitch while they are working on the system. Or… It could be that adding up all my royalties keeps crashing their servers. 😉
I’ve had good success with FMN. Signed quite a few library deals over the years which resulted in placements. 🙂