The Arkade embraces the contemporary concept of eLabels. Music has always tended to be delivered in a form suited to its carrier e.g. 8 track, vinyl, compact cassette, CD etc. With the internet the rules are changed and the old album concept is no longer relevant.

We think that with the advent of MP3 downloads there is an exciting opportunity for the independent artist. In the past the cost of reproducing CDs for sale to fans was often prohibitive. Today it can still cost around £700 to have 1,000 CDs manufactured. And there are hundreds of thousands of unsold CDs around the country.

We suggest artists produce and release regular bundles of three or four tracks. This means that an artist has more frequent releases and can maintain more relevant dialogue with their fan base.

Our subscriber agreement is non-exclusive. This means artists are free to market their music whenever, wherever and however they choose. Many artists in the Arkade also sell their music elsewhere – and that is fine.

The advantage of the Arkade is that the artist has a personal control panel that provides statistics of visits, track previews, track sales and bundle sales. Quarterly reporting is delivered in the same manner as a label which allows the artist (or label if they are the subscriber) to correctly account for their business.
Unlike most digital music stores we do not operate on a pre-determined pricing structure. The artist decides the price of downloads and bundles. They can change the pricing at any time they wish through the control panel.

There is also a great promotions feature which allows the artist to run special offers that are driven by limiting time or quantity. For example an artist could market a track as “60p for the first 20 purchases” and when these have been sold the price would automatically revert to the normal price or the track could be removed from sale (a digital ‘limited edition’).

But the thing that really distinguishes the Arkade is that artists receive 100% of the download price they set. Therefore if they sell 168 downloads priced at £1 they would earn £168. There is no split of earnings that the artist has to giveaway.

Relevant Links

Arkade feature comparison chart >>> chart

Quick Links

Overview of the Arkade >>> information

Help pages >>> help

Learn about the team behind the Arkade >>> details

Go to the main Arkade website www.arkade.com

Useful Music Links

Musicians' Union www.musiciansunion.org.uk

BPI www.bpi.co.uk
The British Phonographic Industry is a trade body and an authoritative source of industry information.

MCPS www.mcps.co.uk
The Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society Ltd represents composers, songwriters and music publishers.

PRS www.prs.co.uk
The Performing Right Society administers the performing right in musical works.