All You Need To Know About the Music Business: 6th Edition

For fifteen years, All You Need to Know About the Music Business has been universally regarded as the definitive, essential guide to the music industry. Now in its sixth edition, it has been completely revised and updated with crucial, up-to-the-minute information on the industry's major changes in response to today's rapid technological advances and uncertain economy. Veteran music lawyer Donald Passman is in the thick of this transformation and understands that anyone involved in the music business is feeling the deep, far-reaching effects of it. This latest edition of what the Los Angeles Times called "the industry bible" will lead novices and experts alike through the fundamental practices as well as the new, uncharted territory of one of this country's most dynamic industries.

In the music business, the key to success lies in knowing how to protect yourself. To do that, you need the best and most up-to-date advice available. Whether you are -- or aspire to be -- a performer, writer, or executive, Passman's comprehensive guide to the legal and financial aspects of the music world is an indispensable tool. Drawing on his unique professional experience as one of the most trusted advisors in the industry, Passman offers authoritative information on how to:

• Select and hire a winning team of advisors -- personal and business managers, agents, and attorneys -- and structure their commissions, percentages, and fees in a way that will protect you and maximize these relationships
• Master the big picture and the finer points of record deals
• Navigate the ins and outs of songwriting, music publishing, and copyrights
• Maximize concert, touring, and merchandising deals

This latest edition also includes information on:

• Music downloads, webcasting, streaming-on-demand, and podcasting
• The new video streaming services
• How royalties are computed in the digital age
• The latest developments in deals with independent labels, including upstream deals
• Updates on all the traditional industry matters, such as royalties, advances, video budgets, and copyright law

In All You Need to Know About the Music Business, one of the industry's most influential figures shows you how to thrive in the most exciting business in the world. It's a book that no musician, entertainment lawyer, agent, promoter, publisher, manager, record company executive -- anyone who makes their living from music -- can afford to be without.

Introduction to the Sixth Edition

Welcome, welcome. The industry has been through a few changes since we last met. You know, sort of like those pesky wet spells around New Orleans and Thailand.

Piracy is running rampant, CD sales are slipping. Record companies are panicking. Just the things you need for a fun picnic.

But there's some good news glimmering on the horizon. Digital sales are on the rise. Demand for music is at an all-time high (even if the pirates are supplying a lot of it). And we're seeing some new ways to make money, such as streaming videos on the Internet, ring tones, digital merchandising, podcasts, and the like.

There's also been a massive change in the way that record companies compute royalties. They've actually gotten . . . simpler. I never thought I'd use that s-word in connection with royalties, but Hallelujah.

This sixth edition is by far the most extensive revision I've ever done, as we're stumbling around in the new technologies, trying to figure out what everyone should get paid. So you'll get the latest scoop on all the newfangled gizmos. And at no extra charge (if you act RIGHT NOW), there's an update of what's happening with record deals, songwriting, merchandising, touring, and so forth.

So come on in and take a peek. The water's a little cold at first, but you'll get used to it.

P.S. Congrats if you read this. It means you're a real Go-Getter, since most folks skip the introduction.

Copyright © 1991, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2006 by Donald S. Passman