Even For Majors Labels, It’s A Direct To Fan Future
UMG & Mozes Expand Latin Fan Outreach
Direct to fan marketing and sales has been the indie d.i.y. mantra for months, and now even the major labels are getting into the game. With an increasingly fractured media landscape and a decreasing retail marketplace, what choice do they have?
Recent surveys have shown that mobile interactivity trumps the internet
for many Hispanic consumers and Universal Music Group upped its d-to-f game for Spanish speakers today with a deal to utilize the Mozes Connect mobile engagement platform. By leveraging the Mozes Connect platform, UMG is opening additional channels of discovery and delivery to Spanish-speaking and bilingual fans.
Using the platform, UMG artists can now also establish direct connections to fans using text updates, mobile sweepstakes and online widgets in Spanish. Campaigns created in Spanish can also be directly promoted to their Facebook and Twitter pages from within the Mozes Connect platform.
The majors are building tons of D2F sites lately, but what they haven’t mastered yet is the product release cycle. They aren’t used to engaging their fans on an ongoing basis and that’s what it’s going to take to reap the benefits of their already large fanbases.
The hardest thing for smaller artists is building a fanbase, and artists at the majors already have them. Now they just need to find ways to interact with them in a more consistent manner. Whatever happens, there is no denying D2F will be huge for the entire industry going forward.
Text updates, mobile sweepstakes. and weak widgets do not a “rich media experience” via the mobile phone make… Nor do they engage the fan in an ongoing relationship. They are text based campaigns, once the campaign is over — goodbye fan. Direct communications – yes — ongoing relationship – no.
What about mobile fan clubs and communities that feature rich graphics, links to video options, monetization, analytics, mobile advertising, raffles, contests, and voting? Come on UMG, and the rest of the majors — let’s start to get a clue here…
When will you wake up and realize that monetizing through the cell phone is the key here and the future?
when did the music/film/radio/cable & TV companies wake up! ???
it was always consumer Direct ..who buys the Product. the Lawyers/Distributors/promoters .. ? “NO” the fans
thats who !…any technology now or in the future that
exposes talent is Good., just pay them,stop with all the stupid reasons Why they should not get Paid, just like the Bad old Days of Disco & recorded tracks, why pay Musicians and Live performing talent.. we can play the “Tracks”. well how & why should new Talent Work hard & dream of being a “Star” ?..club owners think they are doing a band or talent a favor buy paying them.
it is the only work that still pays the same fee as 30 years AGO!..make that 40 years ago!* Joseph nicoletti consulting. Cailf,Usa ph 949-715-7036
Direct to fan or direct to music content user is the future. But until recently it’s been difficult for DIY musicians to have the tools to sell directly without a hunk taken out for distribution. But I just found a new widget at LicenseQuote.com that allows me to sell directly from my website, high quality MP3’s, WAVs (or aiff,aacs) and allows me to keep all the income less processing fees. Now that the infrastructure is there it is up to me to do the live concerts and networking to get my name out there. For my market, personal connection still trumps the mobile platforms.