Free Legal Downloads Lands Reznor $750,000

We have all heard of the Radiohead experiment where they let users pay what they thought the album was worth. It was a valiant effort and a good idea, but with a few flaws that many were quick to point out. There was no sampling of the music to decide what it might be worth and the bit rate was noticably low for any download source on the web. Nine Inch Nails Trent Reznor saw this model but applied a more business oriented approach to free downloads with variable pricing and packages available, while the free downloads were always just that - free.
The free music offered itself as more of a gateway to his music Ghosts where there we also premium offerings featuring a bluray disc, dvd of the music etc. at $300 (qty. 2,500 sold out) and simply tiered down from there. The important thing here is Reznors vision beyond the blessings of the recording industry to see that music is more about an "experience" rather just raw content. Gone are the days of one product sales (see: Album) and incoming is the time where free to premium offerings will net you the biggest profit - what an idea! Much like every other business has been doing for decades, Reznor had the not only the forsight, but more importantly the ability to put together such an experiment that proved to be very successful.
It only took Reznor 3 days to pull down his astonishing $750,000 which is a good ROI (Return On Investment) for any business venture. He helped building buzz by actually putting the free downlaodable version of his work onto Torrent sites etc. It is good to see artists using technology in a way that works with the public's interest and still provides a substantial income for the fruits of their labor. Good job NiN, Great job Reznor. Hopefully we will see more artists following suit. Adios DRM? Hello free downloads? Let's hope so!