There is growing evidence that Apple is changing its tune. Everyone is... Things are in the shift if you ask me. No telling where it will all land, but I am willing to say that there is no system in place that is on solid ground. Social networking is changing faster than we can pay attention as well. I have a recent blog post on that very subject http://www.onlineartistpromo.com In short my suggestion to Independent Musicians is... Diversify... Get out there use the best quality resources you can and as many as possible. Tom Siegel http://www.onlineartistpromotion.com

It looks like UMG is hitting the indie crowd with everything they've got. To me it is good and bad. Good because I think it demonstrates that the music industry in general has shifted to a new direction forever. I mean the major labels appear to have adopted the go with the flow mentality as opposed to fight your way back to the top mentality. This is only good because I have wanted the industry to change for decades now. So I am glad to see the resistance falling apart. It is bad because I can't help being sceptical of the major labels' ability to operate in the artist's best interest. Let's say UMG starts to gain some traction with indie musicians through their latest efforts (tunecore, echospin, etc.). How are they going to turn it around to screw the artist in the name of making a buck. It is a good discussion I think. There is still a lot of support for self-promotion in my opinion. Just a note about Topspin: I wouldn't necessarily say they are the holy grail, but they are at least more accessible to small scale independent musicians. Tom Siegel http://www.onlineartistpromotion.com