Longing for the day ...

Sony wakes up!?

Good to see one of the major record companies has finally found a good use for the web. Shame it's not one that works to the advantage of everybody else ...

But it makes perfect sense to them and doesn't hurt anyone in the independent scene. Basically, they're getting better data for their A&R efforts. They set up a pet blog system, and artists can go to the trouble of putting themselves before the eyes of the companies. The artists do all the work except for the public-feedback bit, which is done by the blogosphere. They can even try a bit of development with artists they're interested in.

They get a great assessment of the artist's work and attitude, and can use the music blogosphere to point out which ones have genuine traction rather than flash-in-the pan appeal ... they can take their time to see how sustainable the artists' work ethic is ... up to a point.

Brilliant! Except that it still puts the load on the artists and their supporters to do the legwork and offers nothing to them in return ... still, it's a perfect application of the web's benefits.