With retail music sales in a continuing slump, the major labels are increasingly looking for innovative ways to market and distribute their product. The latest trend is taking advantage of the popularity of video games such as “Rock Band” and “Grand Theft Auto IV.”
Already, games like “Rock Band” and “Guitar Hero III” have been phenomenally successful as platforms to sell music, especially downloadable tracks and albums. But both of these games are music-related, so selling tracks within the game ties in nicely, and doesn’t seem so much like blatant product placement.
Now the major music labels are reaching out to non-music related games in order to sell albums and downloadable tracks. And at the moment, “Grand Theft Auto IV” is the hottest video game around, so the big industry players are betting big that the game can help music sales. The game allows players to “tag” a song from its soundtrack and receive information about the artist, album and song. Players can also store their tagged songs in a play list on the Amazon.com MP3 store, with the option to buy the tracks at a later time.
“Grand Theft Auto IV” has already been a huge success in the video game world, and conveniently for the music industry, the game features more than 200 songs, making up the largest soundtrack in the history of video games. In fact, music is such an integral part of the game, that promoting bands, albums and single tracks seems perfectly natural, and not at all like a forced marketing exercise.
This type of product placement has been common in television and film for years, but until recently it was unheard of with video games. But with many media critics saying that “games are the new film,” and “television is dead,” the major record labels are keen to test out promotions that tie in with games, or even direct product placement tie-ins, such as that used in “Grand Theft Auto IV.”
In effect, “Grand Theft Auto IV” has added a “buy” button to the game, making it easy for players to get information and purchase tunes online quickly. With the game now on the verge of being the most popular in video game history, the in-game promotion could prove extremely profitable for the music industry.
Buying music via video games may also help revive the careers of some artists, and help new and unknown bands get their foot in the door. The success of games like “Rockstar” has proven that the video game industry and the music industry don’t have to compete with each other, but rather, can form joint venture partnerships that benefit both industries.
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