The music scene in the United States is in a rut. Large corporations dictate what is sold in stores. They exploit the artists and trample on the rights of citizens. Our artists earn a living by playing shows. Meanwhile, the music companies rake in the profits from sales of overpriced CDs. Most of those CDs come out of their jewelboxes just one time, to be converted to MP3 and saved on an MP3 player.
Why don't artists sell their music from their own websites and myspace pages? The reason is payment. The largest markets are young people who don't have credit cards. Also, credit card sales have high fees, which cut into revenue from individual track sales. Many customers don't trust small-time shopping sites with their credit card numbers and personal information.
I propose a payment system that takes away the risk and the fees. Artists could use it to sell their work online to a global market. The system may liberate popular culture from the greedy corporations. It may lead to a renaissance.
Links
[http://cobrapunchers.blogspot.com/2007/04/new-music-industry.html The Cobra Punchers: The New Music Industry] - A rock and roll band from Michigan, The Cobra Punchers, suggest that musicians give away their music for free on their websites.
[http://negativland.com/albini.html The Problem With Music by Steve Albini] - A record producer, Steve Albini, explains how the record industry financially screws new bands who sign contracts.
[http://gear.ign.com/articles/749/749883p1.html IGN: RIAA Petitions Judges to Lower Artist Royalties]