The Best Actor in the Vase of Meiyu

Chapter 1257 The Intention of a Drunkard
5%.

There is no doubt that this number is shocking.

Edgar and Lucas both felt something was wrong.

Being too stingy and refusing to give up any interests is obviously not a good thing; but at the same time, being too generous and giving up most of the interests is also not a good thing.

Abnormality must be evil.

However, Edgar and Lucas had very limited knowledge of the music industry, and they couldn't even come up with anything to talk about.

At this time, they noticed something unusual, but they had no idea what Matt was up to, so they had no idea how to fight back.

Sure enough, a professional music agent is still needed——

It is true that different trades are like different mountains.

However, Anson, who had been sitting quietly by the side since Edgar started talking, chuckled.

"No wonder my mother always said, never trust a stranger easily, maybe he is the big bad wolf."

Matt sensed the bone in his words and smiled at Anson, "So, you are Little Red Riding Hood?"

Anson also raised his lips, "Times have changed. In the past, Little Red Riding Hood might have surrendered obediently; but now, Little Red Riding Hood will also resist."

"Matt, how much is a song on iTunes?"

Edgar: ?

Lucas:?

To be honest, they really don't know the answer to this question.

Matt's heart moved slightly, and a sense of uneasiness was emerging from deep inside, but Matt remained calm, "One dollar, ninety-nine cents to be exact."

Anson, "What about the profit share that singers get from each song?"

Matt was not fooled. "This is an industry secret. Sorry, I can't answer that."

Anson pursed his lips slightly, "Well, how about letting me guess? You don't need to answer, just give me a look in response, how about that?"

Matt had a bad feeling, and the feeling of uneasiness was gradually growing.

Things are out of control.

Digital audio sources are still in the early stages of development and are gaining popularity. There are many chaos and no industry regulations, so different platforms and companies are all groping for the way forward. Naturally, there is no unified standard.

Matt said it was confidential, and he was not lying. This high-level intelligence must not be leaked, otherwise competitors would immediately launch malicious competition.

However, Matt felt uneasy at the mischievous gleam in Anson's eyes.

Matt gave a wry smile and spread his hands.

"Anson, unless you agree to cooperate and we formally sit down at the negotiation table to negotiate, otherwise, you know, I can't give any form of response."

Then, the subject changed.

"Of course, if you are ready and we are now in cooperation mode, that is another matter."

Matt is trying to turn things around.

Unfortunately, Anson didn't buy it.

"Five cents," said Anson.

Edgar and Lucas were both stunned.

Edgar blurted out, "How much?"

Lucas quickly glanced at Matt. Although Matt's expression was calm and composed, Lucas still caught a hint of surprise.

Anson guessed it right.

Not only hit the target, but also hit it accurately.

Because it was so accurate, even a veteran like Matt was briefly shaken:
How did Anson guess it?
Five cents.

Only five cents for a song? In other words, that's only 5% of sales.

So, if we increase it by another 5%, that is cents, Anson will get cents in dividends for every download of his songs on iTunes.

One hundred dollars for a thousand times?
No wonder Matt was so generous and offered 5% right away!

Edgar and Lucas both looked at Matt with a scrutinizing look in their eyes, and the happy atmosphere suddenly became tense.

Matt had no words to say——

He couldn't admit it, but he couldn't deny it either.

In fact, the entire industry is currently in its early stages, including iTunes itself which is still groping and negotiating, and the industry has not yet been uniformly regulated.

After all, iTunes's own paid music download function was only launched in 2003, and it has not been a year yet.

Currently, iTunes is trying to launch comprehensive cooperation with music companies and musicians, and there are still many variables in the negotiations.

This needs to be divided into two parts.

Some are independent musicians.

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That is, record companies do not participate in the profit sharing. iTunes mainly adopts a 50-50 split. One song costs one dollar, Apple gets 50 cents and the independent musician also gets 50 cents.

This approach is very much like bandit logic, as Apple did nothing and just took half of the profits; however, independent musicians particularly like this.

Because of their cooperation with record companies, their royalty dividends were usually less than 20%, but now it has increased to 50%. Without the layers of exploitation from record companies and distribution channels, the profits they can directly see have increased significantly, allowing them to concentrate on making music without external interference.

One part is the record company.

At present, Warner Music is the first to be affected, but the negotiations between Apple and Warner Music are at a stalemate.

Apple's goal is to take 40% of the dividends; but Warner Music allows Apple to take 30% of the dividends, which is almost the same as the dividend ratio of traditional record stores and other distribution channels.

In other words, Warner Music is not resisting the trend of the times. They are willing to incorporate digital music platforms into their own distribution channels, but refuse to change their model and just treat iTunes as another record store.

At the same time, Warner Records turned to the musicians and said that the new distribution channel requires a lot of resources, the distribution and publicity costs continue to rise, and the royalties given to singers from the digital audio source need to be reduced and controlled between 5% and 15%. The top singers only get 15%.

Adding one plus one minus, Warner Music holds a 55% or even 65% stake in the profits.

This is the real robber.

Otherwise, why do people say that all these big companies are monsters that eat people without leaving any bones?
Of course, everything is still in the stage of exploration and negotiation, variables always exist, and these figures cannot be said to be 100% certain.

But one thing is certain: in front of these big companies, singers and other independent individuals are always a vulnerable group, and this has never changed.

The 5% that Anson mentioned is the minimum amount, equivalent to the bottom line, and Matt cannot deny its existence.

The problem is that Matt can't explain it, otherwise he might leak the content of the negotiations between Apple and Warner Music and inadvertently disclose business secrets.

On the side, Edgar and Lucas are watching closely, so Matt must be careful.

So, Anson posed a difficult question, a dilemma.

Matt was slightly stunned and laughed, "Anson, you did it on purpose, right?"

Obviously, Anson deliberately put Matt in a dilemma.

Anson, however, looked innocent, "If I'm wrong, you're welcome to correct me at any time."

After saying this, Anson spread out his hands and made an invitation gesture.

Matt shook his head softly in resignation.

Unexpectedly, Anson changed the subject and said, "The point is, you just said that iTunes is willing to sign a special agreement that is 5% higher than the standard agreement. Does the 5% here include cooperation with Warner Records, or does it not include it?"

The drunkard doesn't mean wine.

Matt's expression paused slightly, and his eyes slowly brightened up——

It seems that Anson is smarter than he thought.

This is not surprising. In Hollywood, those who can truly stand at the top of the pyramid are all smart people, no matter how stupid or pretty they look.

(End of this chapter)