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Because Trent Reznor is a big enough name, he can control the conditions of the contract. He also has proven he is willing to go without the studios if need be,

Because Trent Reznor is a big enough name, he can control the conditions of the contract. He also has proven he is willing to go without the studios if need be, which, for a known artist, is a huge bargaining chip. Using him as a shining example is to be incredibly naive about how contract negotiation works. Nobody is saying that recording studios do nothing (just handling distribution is big), just that they suck out far more value than they provide for the average artist.

IBM 12y ago
Whether you are small or well known will impact your terms with the label, but that's a private business negotiation and not related to my point. The premise of my original comment is that they have aligned interests and that's because they provide value to the artist that signs with them. There are plenty of artists that are with indie labels or who are independent and the artist is free to choose whatever arrangement they want. Trent Reznor went back to record labels because he's going to make more money with a record label, even if he's going to keep less share of the profit.
- pooper 12y ago
  > [y]our terms with the label [is] a private business negotiation and not related to my point > Trent Reznor went back to record labels because he's going to make more money with a record label, even if he's going to keep less share of the profit. I'm sorry but you seem a little confused. You can't hand wave that the terms of the contract are irrelevant but also assert that he is making a smaller cut of the pie with the label.
  - IBM 12y ago
    His share of the pie is smaller but the pie is much bigger. What terms he negotiated with his label has nothing to do with the fact that labels serve a purpose and are aligned with the interests of the artist.
    - pooper 12y ago
      How do we know that he isn't getting a bigger piece of the pie without knowing the details of his contract? You guys are idiots.

IBM 12y ago

Whether you are small or well known will impact your terms with the label, but that's a private business negotiation and not related to my point. The premise of my original comment is that they have aligned interests and that's because they provide value to the artist that signs with them. There are plenty of artists that are with indie labels or who are independent and the artist is free to choose whatever arrangement they want. Trent Reznor went back to record labels because he's going to make more money with a record label, even if he's going to keep less share of the profit.

pooper 12y ago
> [y]our terms with the label [is] a private business negotiation and not related to my point > Trent Reznor went back to record labels because he's going to make more money with a record label, even if he's going to keep less share of the profit. I'm sorry but you seem a little confused. You can't hand wave that the terms of the contract are irrelevant but also assert that he is making a smaller cut of the pie with the label.
- IBM 12y ago
  His share of the pie is smaller but the pie is much bigger. What terms he negotiated with his label has nothing to do with the fact that labels serve a purpose and are aligned with the interests of the artist.
  - pooper 12y ago
    How do we know that he isn't getting a bigger piece of the pie without knowing the details of his contract? You guys are idiots.