TO INFINITY AND BEYOND...buying music on line or on foot?
(Real Groove March 2000)

Once upon a time, we imagined the future would bring us flying cars, personal jet packs, robot pets, and space age monorails. So, just where is the future taking us? Will we all become compulsive stay at home types, who order our groceries, chat to our friends and download our music and movies, via computer? Virtual convenience only goes so far.

What is the future sound? In this column I'll look at everything that's flash and new in the world of music, trying to get to the bottom of the latest in 'cutting edge technological developments', and seeing if I can figure out if it's the real deal or just plain old hype. Any suggestions, or comments are most welcome. I'm coming at this from the point of view of a music fan, not some jargon-spewing computer geek, so if I trip up along the way, bear with me. It's all just one big learning curve.

One thing I love about the Internet is it's one big endless sea of ever changing jargon. The latest ones you may have spied in the business pages are 'convergence', and 'e-commerce'. Yes, 'The Internet is here to stay' trumpeted the editorial of the dear old New Zealand Herald, on January 4th of this year. The one and the same paper that several years ago all but ignored the internet, eventually jumping into the fray with a rather half hearted attempt at an online presence, finally gets it, and they're winning awards for their classy website www.nzherald.co.nz, collecting the prestigious Site of the Year Award at the1999 Internet Awards. They even have a regular web correspondent in Peter Sinclair, a former television personality, like John Hawkesby. Cyber Granny Herald. Who would've thought?

In a survey done late last year by AC Nielsen, 54% of New Zealanders used the Internet, and one in five Net users had bought something online. I can't say I was one of those online shoppers, though I have been looking at spending some bucks online while researching this story, just to find out what it's like, but I've hit a wee problem; finding something I want to buy, which is of course the same problem you get if you just happen to stroll into your favourite local record emporium. So, what is going to get you spending bucks online, for some new sounds? A wider range of music to choose from, cheaper prices than in the shops, and convenience (shop at home). Oh, and a computer with an internet connection. If one in five New Zealanders bought something via the internet last year, I guess that the other four of you won't be shopping online any time soon, huh? Try asking yourself this; do you know anyone who has bought something online?

Off I clicked into cyberspace, and decided to try buying a cd from Sounds brand new online store (a few other sites selling cd's online include US based www.cdnow.com and www.amazon.com. Look around and see what's out there). Sounds is the second largest music retailer in this country (after The Warehouse), and they have ventured into online cd sales, with www.soundsnz.com. It's a very 'gee wizz' looking beast, with some very clever animations greeting the intrepid surfer. Under the delightful headline 'Site that suck: either they're trying too hard, or they're just not trying at all',Chris Keall, editor of IDG's news website www.idg.co.nz noted recently that Sounds online store has some good features, like an online magazine, gig guide and radio station, but pointed out that this graphics-heavy site relies on the customer having downloaded the right bits of software to be able to look at the site and its clever animations.
Keall quotes the website designer for Yahoo.com, Zod Nazem (great name!), who told Fortune that "If you make a site look really fancy, it looks great the first time. The second time it's amusing. The third time it's just plain annoying". Keall observes that "this man's site may look dull, but he's worth $1.5 billion, and his users spend an average of 71 minutes a month on the site". After trying a few artist searches at Sounds site, I found a local release I've wanted for a while, the sole album by Bressa Creeting Cake (you can catch several members from this now defunct group in a mighty fine pop combo named Golden Horse). I entered the details required, address, email contact, etc, and off my order went. I received prompt email notification that the order had been received and was being processed. Three days later my cd arrived, via Courier Post. It cost me $28.95, ($26.95 plus $2.00 postage and handling). The ironic thing is the cd still had a sticker on it from a Sounds record shop, which indicated that if I'd trudged off to their store, I could've bought the cd for $29.95. So, the saving was negligible. Even though Sounds promised prices cheaper than their land based stores, it seems the savings are not particularly significant. So, if it's not cheaper prices, what do Sounds offer?

Steve Cadman, Sounds Online Store Manager, says that for their customers it's all about convenience, and choice. Sounds are expanding their online stock; they currently offer 12,000 cd titles, and by the time you read this they hope to have 220,000titles sourced via an American distributor. However, looking at their website, I definitely did not get the impression that they had 12,000 cd's available online. So if I saved one whole dollar, why bother? If I trek off to the record store, what do I get that the online experience can't offer me? Paying for petrol, traffic congestion, and parking hassles (If I owned a car), but hey, there's instant gratification; I pay my money, and I leave with a cd or two. Buying online, you type in some credit card numbers, and wait. And wait. And wait.

Oliver Wang of Urb Magazine went shopping (in their December 99 edition) for some of the latest hip hop recordings, going to three leading hip hop record shops, and also checking out HipHopSite.com and SandboxAutomatic.com. How did they match up? Price wise, the record shop had the advantage over shopping online, once you added in handling and postage costs. For previewing, both the record store and the website offer soundbites for your listening pleasure. And for immediate satisfaction, well, the record shop wins hands down. Of course, with a specialist market like hip hop, the reputation of a record store draws in customers from far and wide -will an online store get that same rep?

Take Real Groovy Records (our esteemed publisher), for example. It's a shop with a history of successfully meeting a variety of niches. Manager Chris Hart says a lot of shops go online in order to carry a bigger range of music; "We've already got a huge range of music in our shop.' So, will Real Groovy venture into online sales? "Maybe we will, maybe we won't" comments Hart, adding that a website may offer a way to share special deals with Real Groovy Club members, and perhaps allow them to browse before coming into the shop. If you want some good advice about what to watch out for when shopping online, I recommend you check out the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, to read up on your rights as an online consumer. Some of their suggestions include questions like, does the website list a contact phone/fax number and a street address, not just a PO box number? When I checked out www.cdstar.co.nz, which operates in Australia and here ,the only contact information I could find was a Private Bag address in Christchurch, no phone number, no address, but they did have an email address. Other points the Ministry raises is are does the site clearly explain the costs involved in your purchase, ie delivery, post and handling; do they outline their return, exchange and refund policy (one local dj I spoke to told of getting really good service from a well known overseas site, but when he wanted to return some damaged vinyl he'd purchased, they were not very unhelpful, and return post to the US is not cheap!);do they give details about their security mechanisms for online payments, and do they display a privacy policy, regarding the information they collect from you? Sounds Online has a 'Sounds Select Guarantee' hidden in small type in the bottom left hand corner of their main page, which states that "Sounds uses the latest technology to protect your credit card information" but doesn't elaborate on exactly what this technology might be. They provide details on ordering through the site, or providing your credit card information via phone, fax or email.

Another local site I checked out was www.smokecds.com, based in Wellington. It's a very good site, jam packed with easy to follow information on the latest releases in a wide range of genres, covering pop/rock, reggae, hip hop, electronica, dance, alternative, country, jazz, soundtracks, downbeat and so on.They have specials on their main page also, everything from Beastie Boys (their 'Sounds of Silence' double cd, "only $29.95, usually $39.95") to BT, from Sting to the Scarfies soundtrack. The price on most of the New Zealand artists with albums currently in the shops (Fiona McDonald, Ma V Elle, Kog Transmissions, Salmonella Dub, The Nomad) was only $23.95, a damned good price. Smokecds disclaimer about their service is listed under 'About us', clearly outlining their policies regarding orders, price, security of your information, and privacy. There is no street address for them, though.

At www.Marbecks.co.nz they offer to courier your purchase free of charge anywhere in New Zealand, but they will charge you full price for your cd's, the same as in their shops, along with a few specials, as well. Mind you, I did find a copy of Malcolm Mclaren's 'Buffalo Gals 99 Remix' on vinyl for $16.98, and it's got the original version on it! But Marbecks have absolutely no information on pricing, security, privacy, ordering, nothing. Perhaps they expect the strong reputation of their shops is enough; it's not. E commerce is a whole new world; I want to know what happens when I give them my credit card details, and when my purchase will arrive. At Smokecds, I found several recent releases I was interested in easily, unlike the Sounds site, which asks you to search for an artist, and doesn't present you with very little text information. Cadman says they have only been up and running for a few months, and are learning as they go. Sounds plan to intro ducetwo versions of the site shortly, one text based (which will load faster onto your computer), and one graphics heavy version, which will require a bit more patience. Me, I'm off to scrounge some 2nd hand vinyl at the K Rd fleamarkets…

MP3.net.nz - local music gets wired
What is MP3? More internet jargon, you sigh. Try this on for size then...Geeky technical definition:MP3 , short for MPEG layer 3.Mp3 compresses recorded music to about one twelfth of its original size. These files can then be transferred via the Internet with imperceptible loss of quality and are downloadable to hard drive, compact disc or mp3 player. According to the folks behind this new local site, Mp3 is a revolution. So, I guess Gil Scott Heron was right then; the revolution will not be televised, it will be compressed bits of audio floating around in cyberspace. Woo hoo.

So, why get your band onto MP3.net.nz? Simple. No longer do bands have to wait for a record deal or to be added to radio play lists; mp3 makes music more accessible than ever before. The mp3 phenomenon is enormous; already around 20million mp3 files are downloaded each day with around fifty million capable users worldwide. This is why the recording industry is running scared over MP3.It's really popular and they didn't come up with it, and now they want control of it, to put it simply. The Recording Industry Association of America is currently pursuing legal proceedings against MP3.com, but this will probably fall by the wayside, as these two adversaries realise that they need each other.Mp3.net.nz will become New Zealand's most comprehensive music website, a virtual interactive broadcaster and music distributor. Free access to low- resolution sample tracks, artist profiles, a chart and magazine features are a great way for artists to popularise their music. High resolution downloads and CD's available for sale from the website provide a new vehicle for musicians to release their own material.Mp3.net.nz will be the first place to find New Zealand Music Online. It all sounds pretty damned exciting. The mp3.net.nz chaps claim that "We are here to boost New Zealand Music. We operate in good faith with no strings attached: you try us, you like us, you stay. However if you don't want to play with us let us know and off you go, with our best wishes." Cant say fairer than that.

Interested? Then send in....Three songs in any format. CDs and mp3 format preferred.150 words about your band. A photo (Jpeg format).Don't forget your contact details; please include your phone, address and email. Send all your stuff to: PO Box 56 545, Dominion Road, Auckland For info phone 021 420 8881

© 2000 Peter McLennan