Quote from Pekelo:
Again, when mp3.com was functioning the old way, several small artists could make their record in home studios (thanks to technology) put up the songs for very cheap and they were getting most of the charged $6 or so. That was a really good deal specially for less known artists. Of course because it was a good deal for both sides, it had to end...
Edit: I have just looked it up, now they are some kind of Napster affiliate and they charge 99 cents per song...
I hate to say this, but in my experience, the biggest reason that many artists don't take control of their own careers and structure their business in an optimal way is that they just don't have those chops. But there do exist a lot of artists these days who are making their own deals with the big record companies, on their own terms. This is because the money involved in pop media as a whole (of which the music business is an integral part) is now so huge that the record companies know they can't get too cocky. Ani DiFranco was one of the first to make millions on her own, and bands like Dave Matthews have also kept a lot of creative and financial independence. Also, look at Sean Coombs. He is so big, it's sick.
The record companies and their agents have fought back by manufacturing bands and holding their reigns (boy and girl bands).
