eMusic CEO David Pakman on the business of music retailing.

eMusic :: it kicks ass. Maybe not so much for you major label top 40 types out there, but for those of us who live and breathe mainly for new, innovative, independent artists and labels it is the greatest thing to ever happen to the business of buying and selling music. Which is why I am linking to this post on the “unofficial” eMusic blog 17dots by CEO David Pakman. In it he sets forth eMusic’s philosophy on selling music in the “brave new world” and how they are doing their part to keep music healthy. Bottom line: listen to customers not corporations:

eMusic makes a splendid bargain with our customers: get a better deal on music from us than what you get at iTunes, and we’ll work really hard at helping you discover great music. But in return, you spend more money on music than you normally would. And that’s good for everyone: artists, labels and customers. And here’s the bottom line: the average customer only spends about $12 per year on iTunes; by contrast, the average eMusic customer spends about $168 per year with us. Imagine how different our industry would look if more retailers could serve their customers so fully.

Imagine.