Monthly Archives: May 2013

Listener Beware…Fake Adele’s Are Roaming the Internet

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spotifyWe hate to be the bearer of bad news, but for those of you who like to listen to Adele on Spotify (and you know who you are), there is an inconvenient truth you need to be aware of.

There are roughly 600 versions of “Skyfall”, unfortunately none of them feature Adele’s version.   Her label has made the business decision to keep her music off services like Spotify and Rhapsody (both are all you can listen to subscription plans) until the download sales drop off.

So what exactly are you listening to?  When it comes to songs like “Skyfall” or “Suit and Tie” (which, in addition to the original release, has around 180 covers on Spotify); it’s mostly independent artists trying to break through, or song factories trying to make a quick buck (anybody old enough to remember K-tel Records?).

Contrary to what you may think, U.S. copyright laws do not require a cover artist to obtain original artist’s permission.  All they have to do is get a license and pay the royalties.  Streaming services like Spotify and Rhapsody are obligated by law to handle songwriting royalties on behalf of cover artists, so it’s not that complicated.

And, thanks to services like Google’s Limelight, getting a license to record a cover song is easy and inexpensive.  Fill out a form, pay the $15 fee and you could be the next big thing and make a few bucks on unsuspecting consumers at the same time.

Cover songs have been around since humans first started to hum, but in today’s world of computers and World Wide Web, anyone with a microphone, computer and internet hook-up can record and upload a song (talent not included).

Television A La Carte

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TVThe way you pay for cable television may soon change if Senator John McCain gets his way.  He has introduced the Television Consumer Freedom Act which would allow consumers to subscribe to only the channels a la carte instead of having to pay for packages of channels they’ll never watch.   No more paying for ESPN for those not interested sports or the WE channel for viewers who are not interested in Bridezillas.

Senator McCain recently wrote an op-ed piece in the L.A. Times saying…

“Many industries over the years — from the stagecoach builders and saddle makers to those who made the eight-track tape and the Sony Walkman — didn’t much like the change forced on them by the tide of history. Sooner or later, companies standing in the way today will face a similar choice: Meet consumers’ demands or become obsolete.”

Locally, the interesting question is what would happen with Comcast Sports Houston.  As many frustrated sports fans know, CSN Houston has not had much luck being picked up by a number of the major cable providers.   If this bill passes, CSN Houston will be in the position of having fans choose whether or not they want to watch the games and the other ancillary programming they provide.  The sports channel has been adamant about being made available to every subscriber on the basic service level and being compensated for that number.  That all becomes a moot point if Senator McCain’s proposed bill actually becomes law.

More and more, we are living in an on-demand world.  Services like iTunes, Netflex and Hulu are proving that consumers want, what they want, when they want it.  It’s time the cable industry take a hard look at where this is going and get ahead of the curve before they become the way of the 8-Track.