Steve Jobs

Moses Supposes

Moses Supposes: The big opt-out — Steve Jobs’ E-mail from the other side

Moses Avalon is one of the nation’s leading music-business consultants and artists’-rights advocates and is the author of a top-selling music business reference, Confessions of a Record Producer. More of his articles can be found at www.mosesavalon.com.

I was not really affected by the death of Mr. Steve Jobs until the other day when I got an E-mail from him — about a week after he passed. Well, clearly it could not have been from him — he’s in an important meeting right now, I’m sure — but rather someone at Apple cleaning up his affairs.

As many might know, Steve did not believe in putting many layers between him and his customers. For several years well into his worldwide fame, anyone could E-mail him at steve@apple.com. And for about six years now, that addy and another that led to his inbox have been on my mailing list along with the other 14,000 (+/-) of you all.

It seems he’s carrying this policy of staying in touch, even in the after life.

Moses Supposes

Moses Supposes: Did the Digital Music Forum West justify the price tag?

Moses Avalon is one of the nation’s leading music-business consultants and artists’-rights advocates and is the author of a top-selling music business reference, Confessions of a Record Producer. More of his articles can be found at www.mosesavalon.com.

I suppose there is something refreshing about going to a music conference and not seeing too many familiar faces. Sure, I knew many of the panelists from the scene, but the attendees…? Who were these people? Young, cool haircuts, mannered. Was this a music conference?

Digital Music Forum West (#DMFW) was held this year at the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel in Los Angeles on October 6-7.

About 350 registrants filtered in and out of attendance for two days’ worth of 15-minute speeches by people on the tech cusp. Attendees were split between artists on their way up the food chain of the LA music scene and technology providers who navigate on the periphery of the music business.

Unlike every other conference, instead of multi-person panels, DMFW chose to do it more “TED” style. No, this does not mean that music consultant Ted Cohen, of TAG Strategic, decided who speaks and who doesn’t (although, as the moderator, it did have that feel). It means that the format was more in line with the famous TED Conference, where each speaker takes the stage for a short time to give their presentation. It leaves little room for questions and was supposed to discourage speakers from pitching their company. Did it?

Moses Supposes

Moses Supposes: Bon Voyage, Bon Jovi

Moses Avalon is one of the nation’s leading music-business consultants and artists’-rights advocates and is the author of a top-selling music business reference, Confessions of a Record Producer. More of his articles can be found at www.mosesavalon.com/blog.

Jon Bon Jovi says that Apple killed the music business.  Now he is public enemy number one on the blog-o-sphere. Does he deserve it?

Jon Bon Jovi has learned a lesson of the Internet age the hard way.  The lesson he learned is that the techies, who wave the freedom-of-speech flag when it comes to music being free and net neutrality, are not so cool about free speech when it criticizes one of their gods, like Steve Jobs. Indeed, they respond rather childishly to just about anyone, no matter how famous, if even the slightest opinion about Internet-related services is anything less than 1,000,000% positive. (Read what Bon Jovi said here.)

Now, in the before-time, no one cared what geeks thought.  They were in the back room.  But blogs have given them the big stick in the public debate.  And they want respect. They are getting it, but also proving the old adage: power corrupts. Using their new tools, they have silenced and intimidated those that are a threat.  If they agree with you, you are launched to the top of a mountain; if you disagree with their position, they can out-SEO you, out-blog you, and make you look ridiculous in a matter of seconds across the entire globe.

Most politicians and other public people learned this lesson years ago. Even I got a taste recently of how infantile some of these cats can get if you throw the slightest criticism at them. (I noticed an error in a Techdirt blog wherein it called IPS licensing fees a “tax” for music.  The guy freaked out on me and called me a “liar” all over Twitter.)