MerGirl Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 Bono’s ego may soon be in need of its own charity, as the band’s free release of their new record “Songs Of Innocence” has been downloaded less than 200,000 times since being dropped into more than half a billion Apple iCloud accounts earlier this week. According to Billboard (but refuted by the band’s label), the record has been met with massive waves of criticism from both retailers and those who have actual taste in music.While it is understandable that UMG was quick to refute Billboard’s claims that the record had been downloaded by less than 5% of those given the option, this is likely nothing more than hopeful marketing for a record they knew would perform poorly. Billboard makes much of their reputation on accurate charts, and since they have no vested interest in whether or not an album does well, their word is far more reliable than that of companies with big money involved in the U2 brand.The band’s thirteenth formal studio album was sent free to the account of every iTunes user, but the users must opt to stream or download the record to experience the musical mediocrity. This move has infuriated retailers, as it will no doubt impact their bottom line when the album hits shelves next month. Target has a policy of not carrying records that have been released digitally beforehand, and they found themselves in a tough spot with Beyonce’s album late last year. Amazon also takes similar tactics, often denying such releases a strong presence or featured spot. In an effort to combat this, Universal Music Group says the physical release will include four tracks that iTunes will not get until November.Read more at ONTD: http://ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/91043303.html#ixzz3DEZaIkI1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerGirl Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 Some of you do not want the U2 album Apple is giving away. But lots of you were willing to download it. Or, at a minimum, your iPhones and MacBooks did. iTunes users have downloaded more than 2 million copies of “Songs of Innocence” since Tuesday, according to people familiar with the album’s performance. The album is available exclusively on iTunes until the middle of October. Since the scale of the giveaway is unprecedented — Apple says more than 500 million people will have access to the album — it’s hard to put those download numbers in a meaningful perspective. It’s additionally complicated since some users’ iOS or Mac machines were set up to automatically downloaded the album. But it’s reasonable to assume that a bigger number of people have sampled some of the album by streaming it from iTunes or iTunes Radio, where Apple is giving the new songs a big push. One sign that Apple, U2 and the Universal Music Group, the band’s label, will all take as a positive is that the band’s back catalog seems to be selling very nicely on iTunes. The music industry always expects new releases to spur the sales of old albums, but in this case iTunes buyers seem particularly receptive: Right now there are 17 old U2 albums on iTunes top 100 chart; a remastered version of “The Joshua Tree,” the band’s 1987 release, is at the No. 12 spot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madgemusic85 Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 I don't have a strong opinion on Bono, but he can be annoying sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avoid the cliche Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 Love Bono and U2. Digging the new record. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertogerard Posted September 13, 2014 Share Posted September 13, 2014 IF Madonna had done this, all the backlash U2 is getting from this move would've been worth it for Madonna. The possibility of countless people hearing her new album? One can only wonder. Now, if only Guy Oseary can come up with something as groundbreaking for The Queen of Pop's new album. It almost seems as if he's bored with Madonna and promoting her. I've heard people talk more about Madonna in the last year (Magazine covers, Katy Perry, Instagram, Grammy's, duet with Miley Cyrus etc, etc) than when she released MDNA. WTF? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markm Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Even if you’ve never in your life cared about the rock band U2, you may well have heard about their latest escapade: Earlier this week, the group—long associated with Apple, at least since appearing in the company’s classic iPod commercials in 2004—showed up at the grand unveiling of the iPhone 6, and they came with a big announcement: They had a new, surprise album ready to release. And release it they did: With one push of a button, Apple boss Tim Cook released the album to the entire iTunes user database. In other words: If you have an iTunes account, you own the new U2 album—a “gift” from Apple. The album is available for free for a full five weeks, and has automatically downloaded to users’ iTunes libraries. About half a billion people, give or take, now own this new U2 album, making it, by most reckonings, the biggest album launch in history. Haters Gonna Hate You might think you know what we’re going to say, at this point—that this album launch is in some way a case of exemplary content marketing. That’s true to an extent. U2 has created original, compelling content; has imagined a really attention-grabbing way to promote it; has made the content available for free; has clearly succeeded in building buzz, both on social media and in the offline world; and will likely see this buzz translate into more of their old albums sold and more concert tickets purchased, as new listeners discover the pleasures of U2 through this new album giveaway. Read more at http://www.business2community.com/content-marketing/content-marketing-lessons-learned-u2-01006539#tKY7EcKoFqM51PZF.99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 don't know if others agree....i loved u2, really loved...but the last few albums really disappointed me (apart of their "we're the saviours of the world, while we're saving our moeny in netherland"-attitude), not talking about bono's fading voice, but i'm still open to surprise and hope.....and after listening to these new Songs....well....i think its their worst album....no bad songs specifically, but really "meh" without a single stand out...now the point is....i still don't know if this has been a brilliant or not idea....maybe on paper it was, but if the album that you give for free to 500 millions users isn't really great, there isn't the risk of a counter-productive move...? of a boomerang? now, after 4+ years and after this album i'm not very excited to wait for their tour..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesrussle Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 madonna wouldn't benefit from a surprise release because only her immediate fan base would buy it. she's not in her prime so there isn't huge demand for her albums. also the u2 idea is stupid. no one wants music forced on them. when i first got a samsung galaxy, i was forced to have the movie Avatar downloaded on the phone. sure, it lowered the cost of the phone but i haven't watched the movie once and have no interest to. she just needs proper promotion and hype with some amazing live performances and great music thrown in. the last 2 albums had minimal live performances. for mdna we just got the superbowl and didn't get any other live performances on tv for the album. with hc, we only got the promo tour and no live performances on tv. i remember back during mdna, a fan criticized guy oseary on social media for the lack of promotion and he gave a snotty remark back like "wait a year then message me". its been over a year and the promotion for mdna sucked balls Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Who the fuck buys albums nowadays ? I like u2 strategy , like M they just need buzz for the new tour Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuckeye Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 maybe it would have been better if they gave away one or two free songs from the album instead of the whole thing! or a sampler of songs you could download for free. or at the very least an add that came with ur phone, or sale exlusive for iphone users for preordering the album, or a free app with the album on it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurt420 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 madonna wouldn't benefit from a surprise release because only her immediate fan base would buy it. she's not in her prime so there isn't huge demand for her albums. also the u2 idea is stupid. no one wants music forced on them. when i first got a samsung galaxy, i was forced to have the movie Avatar downloaded on the phone. sure, it lowered the cost of the phone but i haven't watched the movie once and have no interest to. she just needs proper promotion and hype with some amazing live performances and great music thrown in. the last 2 albums had minimal live performances. for mdna we just got the superbowl and didn't get any other live performances on tv for the album. with hc, we only got the promo tour and no live performances on tv. i remember back during mdna, a fan criticized guy oseary on social media for the lack of promotion and he gave a snotty remark back like "wait a year then message me". its been over a year and the promotion for mdna sucked balls It's all about promoting the brand to help sell concert tickets. That can be via promoting many things including (or excluding) album specific promotion. The only thing MDNA didn't have was a massive hit single. As it would turn out, a year later Madonna had generated over $300 million and sold about 2 million copies of MDNA album, making it one of the top 15 selling albums in the world in 2012. And that was WITHOUT a massive hit single. I'm sure she and Guy were perfectly content with how things turned out a year after he said that. Everybody in here should be required to watch Who The Fuck Is Arthur Fogel? On Netflix. It really breaks everything down quite nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 It's all about promoting the brand to help sell concert tickets. That can be via promoting many things including (or excluding) album specific promotion. The only thing MDNA didn't have was a massive hit single. As it would turn out, a year later Madonna had generated over $300 million and sold about 2 million copies of MDNA album, making it one of the top 15 selling albums in the world in 2012. And that was WITHOUT a massive hit single. I'm sure she and Guy were perfectly content with how things turned out a year after he said that. Everybody in here should be required to watch Who The Fuck Is Arthur Fogel? On Netflix. It really breaks everything down quite nicely. Thanks for letting me know that this was on Netflix! Almost through it now and it explains a lot!! Fantastic! THANKS!! :mwah: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurt420 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Thanks for letting me know that this was on Netflix! Almost through it now and it explains a lot!! Fantastic! THANKS!! :mwah: You're welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Wow...Gaga's speech self boasting herself is so prophetic regarding her career now did you notice that? It's like she described exactly what she fell into (drugs...not adapting her act) The scene of her watching her own music video lol!!! Sorry to mention the wench but I think everyone should view. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurt420 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 LOL yeah I noticed!! Gaga is full of herself in this. They kiss her ass a bit too much for my liking too but we used to that at this point. Just had to grit my teeth and get through it. Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madgemusic85 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Gaga should have went to Clown college! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesrussle Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 It's all about promoting the brand to help sell concert tickets. That can be via promoting many things including (or excluding) album specific promotion. The only thing MDNA didn't have was a massive hit single. As it would turn out, a year later Madonna had generated over $300 million and sold about 2 million copies of MDNA album, making it one of the top 15 selling albums in the world in 2012. And that was WITHOUT a massive hit single. I'm sure she and Guy were perfectly content with how things turned out a year after he said that. Everybody in here should be required to watch Who The Fuck Is Arthur Fogel? On Netflix. It really breaks everything down quite nicely. where did you read it was one of the top 15 selling albums for 2012? i see the billboard charts has it listed at 44 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurt420 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 where did you read it was one of the top 15 selling albums for 2012? i see the billboard charts has it listed at 44 I'm talking about its worldwide sales. http://www.mediatraffic.de/albums-2012.htm #'s 16-23 are all at 1.6 million, so she's top 20. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesrussle Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 I'm talking about its worldwide sales. http://www.mediatraffic.de/albums-2012.htm #'s 16-23 are all at 1.6 million, so she's top 20. ok but that's not top 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurt420 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 ok but that's not top 15 So top 15 is good and top 16 is bad? Or even top 20 is bad? What's your point? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesrussle Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 So top 15 is good and top 16 is bad? Or even top 20 is bad? What's your point? just wanted to make sure that your claims are factual. if you say its top 15 when its actually top 25 then your facts are not accurate and that claim would be a lie. there's no reason to lie, just make sure your alleged facts are correct. additionally, i'm not sure why, if the #16-23 spots all have the same rounded sales figures, they are in the order they're in. it can't be sorted alphabetically or by release date. so maybe the actual sales figure (since i doubt #16-23 each sold exactly to the number 1.6 million copies, some probably sold 1.64 or 1.62) are factored in and the album ranked 21 like its listed on the world chart instead of 15, 16, or top 20 like you claim. and it is bad. someone of madonna's caliber should at least have a top 10 album if you're counting world charts and not US only. which indicates to me that the brand was not properly promoted in 2012 as you claim it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confessit Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 MDNA was only moderately successful. Having strong successful lead singles is VITAL to Madonnas commercial worldwide success of her albums. MDNA could of easily sold another MILLION copies globally with a massive lead single a la Hung Up. Hung Up was such a massive hit, and it made sure the sales of confessions were so strong worldwide! GMAYL seriously effected the total sales of MDNA!! Anyone who thinks 1.6million is good going seriously needs to look at what Madonna CAN achieve even now in 2014!! If she can pull off another massive lead single next year.....she can easily shift 2million copies and smash MDNA sales figures! But if the lead flops so will the sales..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesrussle Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 MDNA was only moderately successful. Having strong successful lead singles is VITAL to Madonnas commercial worldwide success of her albums. MDNA could of easily sold another MILLION copies globally with a massive lead single a la Hung Up. Hung Up was such a massive hit, and it made sure the sales of confessions were so strong worldwide! GMAYL seriously effected the total sales of MDNA!! Anyone who thinks 1.6million is good going seriously needs to look at what Madonna CAN achieve even now in 2014!! If she can pull off another massive lead single next year.....she can easily shift 2million copies and smash MDNA sales figures! But if the lead flops so will the sales..... exactly. 1.6 million is piss poor for madonna she needs to make better music again. hung up was successful because it was cool and people liked it. same with all of her other past songs that were successful. they're successful for a reason. i don't like when people make excuses all the time for her poor album sales of mdna such as radio won't play her, leaks hurt the album, etc. if her music is good, it will be successful. if its not, it will tank. i'm positive that a majority of the sales of mdna came from the tour ticket bundle. if mdna was released in the fall, those numbers would be significantly lower Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apples388 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Madonna has dodged a bullet here. There's been an incredible backlash about this free iTunes business. A lot of people have said they don't want the record and they want it wiped off their iCloud as well. Negative publicity all around for U2. Well done Guy O for another silly mistake thanks to your idea of "Non-Traditional Promo". Really Guy O is very sweet but he should stick to giving Madonna fans Golden Triangle tickets rather than manage anyone's career. Let's hope Madonna's 2015 album features less of his "visionary" NTP strategies. #thetouristhepromo? No it fucking isn't!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confessit Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Forcing music even if it is free is tacky. It's upto the consumer of they want music or not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apples388 Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 I reckon Madonna should repeat the MDNA strategy really - i.e. announce the album release with the tour and do the ticket bundle. She'll get another No. 1 album easily. The only reason MDNA didn't have legs was because of "Give me All Your Luvin'" being such a weak first single. Feb 2015, QueenDONNA returns bitches! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rachelle of London Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 MDNA still sold that without a hit single. The first for Madonna. Look at maroon 5s sales that year and they had moves like jagger. MDNA did exceptionally well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markm Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Madonna has dodged a bullet here. There's been an incredible backlash about this free iTunes business. A lot of people have said they don't want the record and they want it wiped off their iCloud as well. Negative publicity all around for U2. Well done Guy O for another silly mistake thanks to your idea of "Non-Traditional Promo". Really Guy O is very sweet but he should stick to giving Madonna fans Golden Triangle tickets rather than manage anyone's career. Let's hope Madonna's 2015 album features less of his "visionary" NTP strategies. #thetouristhepromo? No it fucking isn't!! All he is done for U2 is chase the dollar. He hasn't thought about the bigger picture. He is trying to come up with new ideas to change music business but they are poorly executed. Now Apple have released a tool to remove the U2 album. Talk about damage control. http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-29208540 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 don't try junkie...wasted time... btw...the ticket bundle was only for the us market...and nowadays there are no albums or artists that have legs...except for rare and occasional cases... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markm Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 I reckon Madonna should repeat the MDNA strategy really - i.e. announce the album release with the tour and do the ticket bundle. She'll get another No. 1 album easily. The only reason MDNA didn't have legs was because of "Give me All Your Luvin'" being such a weak first single. Feb 2015, QueenDONNA returns bitches! Love Spent or I'm Addicted should have been the first single. Then the album would have had legs. GMAYL should have been purely for the Super Bowl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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