Flom Exits Capitol. Are Label Heads Dinosaurs?
Sources have confirmed that Jason Flom, who heads EMI’s recorded-music operations in North America as chairman of Capitol Music Group, is negotiating an 
exit. He follows Capitol President Lee Trink whose last day at the company is June 30th. Trink also told the Wall Street Journal, "Their view is that there is no local management. There is no such thing as a president of Capitol Records going forward."
COMMENTARY – In our ongoing poll, 66% of Hypebot readers have voted either that label presidents were a costly waste (18%) or at least that running without them was a worthy experiment (48%) . I totally disagree. My understanding of the changes…
at EMI include Nick Gatfield assuming some kind of uber-A&R role over the UK, North America and maybe beyond. A marketing czar is also being sought. But who is left to set priorities and negotiate the inevitable conflicts?
More importantly, while the world is increasingly one marketplace, musical tastes are becoming more segmented. Not only are their fewer international mega-stars left to promote across borders, but parochial tastes are shifting and new niches being born more quickly than ever.
The demise of Flom,Trink and an era of costly executives and private jets is long overdue. But organizations need leadership and the buck always needs to stop somewhere.
VOTE HERE – "Can Labels Run Without Presidents?" and tell us why you voted.
I was thinking about this last night at a meeting of P2Pers here in NYC. You know the stats: 80% of all filesharing is cross-border. You have anecdotes like I do: kids in Malaysia are listening to Western music more than local music..a lot more in just the last few years. Of course the labels need leadership. But the key markets aren’t geographic or even linguistic anymore. An act that breaks in Cincinnati today better be thinking about Chengdu tomorrow. Well the label better be thinking that way. Whether you divide the world by genres or language, it’s way too big to be stitched together with executive jets. The new guys in charge are going to have to face the world the same way hedge fund traders do: in front of a bank of computer screens.