With the fallout of Jeff Price and Peter Wells leaving
TuneCore, the business practices behind digital distribution companies have
certainly taken center stage in recent weeks, with many musicians now taking a
closer look at whom they entrust their catalogs with. While a plethora of
options still exist from familiar names like CD Baby, ReverbNation or Ditto
Music – each with similar, yet uniquely different pricing structures – one
South Korean startup is hoping to shake up the game by offering a distribution model not yet
seen before.
Music Spray is a South Korean digital distribution startup
that offers unlimited lifetime digital
distribution to iTunes, Amazon and more for a one-time fee of $99. Musicians
can release as much content as they want, for as long as they want, forever
with no yearly membership fees. Music Spray is powered by Pison Contents, the
exclusive online distributor for iTunes in Korea and releases their music to
other leading music distribution sites like Melon and Bugs Music, the two
largest and most famous music sites in Korea.
A unique model indeed, but there already exist a few
complications for wider audiences outside the Korean market. Most obviously, only
the Korean language is available, but the company has said that many other
languages including English and Chinese will be supported later this year. When
the multi-language version becomes available, musicians around the globe will
be able to release content onto the global market.
Another big question mark looms in the company’s future.
While still new and reportedly seeing considerable traction, it’s still too
early and tough to gauge whether or not Music Spray will be around as long as the terms of their distribution model (forever),
even after they’ve expanded to become multi-lingual. Some would also argue that
perhaps the concept of $99 lifetime digital distribution is too good to be true
and not very sustainable, as bookkeeping alone and other practices being a major yearly cost for distributors.
Either way, Music Spray is an interesting entry that can offer
a unique solution for musicians while claiming an uncovered territory in the
digital distribution space. We’ll be sure to keep an eye on them as they grow and
expand overseas.
—
Hisham Dahud is a Senior Analyst for Hypebot.com. Additionally, he is the head of Business Development for Fame House and an independent musician. Follow him on Twitter: @HishamDahud
