Guaranteed cash up front, everyone might win

The industry needs to understand that a) fans are always thirsty for more content, b) there’s a lot of content to give, and c) this is not the time to be cheap.

What industry are we talking about here?  Obviously it doesn’t matter.  It happens to be the music industry, but the idea applies to anyone who deals with distributing content.

iTunes Pass, as the article says, is a great idea.  You pay now, and you get everything the artist releases in the future.  It guarantees a payment up front, some of which Apple might even pass on to the artist.  And, since we’re talking about infinitely copyable digital content, there’s no “loss” when the new content is released straight to the customer who has already paid.  Being paid up front means the risk is lower for the content to come – not only is there already money to go towards production, but there is a better sense of the demand, as well as committed fans who may be eager to pay for related goods.

There’s even a small chance that fans win here, too.  If a model like this is successful, and the content companies realize that they don’t have to collect money for each and every transaction, maybe we’ll see some real change in the markets.

Article: Why iTunes Pass is a Great Idea.