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HiA manager of one of the bands said: I sensed there was a huge commercial opportunity with technology and commercial organizations to infiltrate their budgets and get our music on television in a dignified and honorable manner.--- I understand that he wanted to strike a deal with some companies and get their money so that they could show their music on TV. Maybe he was talking about commercials, or maybe about music to the commercials, hard to say....Thanks

Avangi · Accepted Answer

It's not very clear. It's a lousy sentence.

The financial support would have to be via commercials, but not for making them. I'm not sure about "managers," but no one in the business would use "dignified and honorable manner" in the same sentence with "making commercials." Actually, "dignified and honorable" seem like strange words to put in the mouth of a manager.

Cbsteh · Answer

I think you are almost right. I understand it as the manager wants to strike a deal with technology and commercial companies, so that these companies would show their music on TV in a desired manner (i.e., dignified and honorable).

That said, I don't quite like the words "infiltrate their budgets" because "infiltrate" implies an unwanted activity. If the sentence is what I think it is, a better wording would be "dip into their budgets".

Chris

Newguest · Answer

Hi

So, I understand he just wants to use the money these companies have (because they have them and they could pay the band), strike a deal with them, and these companies could use the music of the band he's representing in their TV commercials. For example advertising some new computers, or iPods etc.

Am I almost right?

Cbsteh · Answer

I am unclear myself what the sentence means exactly. But as it is I understand it as the manager wants to use these companies (with their huge budgets) to air the band's music on TV. I don't see it as the manager wants to use these companies' money. He thinks these companies have the money and the facilities to air the band's music on TV.

Chris

Newguest · Answer

Oh, I think I start to understand.

We're talking about music videos. I understand that it costs a lot of money to air anything on TV. Each song lasts at least a few minutes so it would cost the band a fortune if they wanted to pay for it themselves, so, probably, the manager wants the big companies to sponsor them.

Avangi · Answer

Newguest A manager of one of the bands said: I sensed there was a huge commercial opportunity with technology and commercial organizations to infiltrate their budgets and get our music on television in a dignified and honorable manner.

These interpretations seem off the wall, but on the other hand so does this sentence.

"I sensed there was a huge commercial opportunity" clearly refers to a chance for the band to make big money.

"With technology and commercial organizations to infiltrate their budgets" clearly refers to a source of money - perhaps only seed money. Does he mean "technology organizations and commercial organizations"? I've never heard either one of these expressions. What the heck is a commercial organization? A company? Rediculous! Is it an advertising company in the business of making commercials, or simply a company in business to make money? What is a technology organization? A cable company? Microsoft?

So what budgets? It would have to be their advertising budgets. So Microsoft is going to sponsor "The Rock and Roll Hour Live." I must have missed it.

The band is going to make huge money making TV commercials? - in a dignified and honorable manner? You gotta be kidding!

The technology and commercial organizations are going to invest their surplus funds in the music video business in hopes of doubling their money? Probably would beat the stock market!

What does the music video business have to do with "getting our music on television?"

I can well appreciate the manager of a band ripping off a sentence which makes absolutely no sense, but I can't understand why anyone would bother to quote it.

Hopefully, prior context would shed some light on this.

Newguest · Answer

Hi

Maybe I caused some confusion because I skipped a short part of the original sentence, i.e., "the sort whose machines we use in U2's work", but I didn't think it would help.

Ok, I'll quote the whole passage as I have one more question:

The manager of U2, Paul McGuiness, said: The campaign started for me in early 2004. I was picking up on all this mobile technology and particularly the way in which telephone companies were likely to become distributors of music in the future. An old friend from the music business, Ralph Simon, was now chairman of the Mobile Music Forum. Ralph founded Zomba Music Publishing and Jive Records, he is a genuine music industry heavyweight, and he became my guide to this rapidly expanding area. Ringtones are really the thin end of an enormous wedge which will eventually be full spectrum sound and picture delivered through the air to mobile devices. In the past we had never worked with advertisers or sponsors. The only time we'd ever allowed U2 music to be used in a commercial way was in a movie. If we were able to attach a U2 song to a big budget motion picture advertising campaign, it was like attaching a rowboat to an aircraft carrier. The music business markets itself by infiltrating other free media. It is very skilful at promoting its wares through radio, televison and press rather than buying advertising space. I sensed there was a huge commercial opportunity with technology and commercial organizations, the sort whose machines we use in U2's work, to infiltrate their budgets and get our music on television in a dignified and honorable manner. So Ralph Simon and I spent most of 2004 talking to Vodafone, Nokia, Hewlett-Packard, Intel and T.Mobile, trying to find a way in which our brands could cooperate for mutual benefit without being embarrassing. I nearly pulled this off, but in the end I couldn't sell it to the band. Even though any of these deals could have been justified, they didn't want the accusations of selling out, and so, rather disappointingly, none of the deals on the table were consummated. Meanwhile we were talking to Apple.

We already had a relationship with Apple. We were one of the first adopters of iTunes and encouraged other artists to support iTunes right at the beginning of 2002.

1. Maybe now that one sentence makes more sense?

2. As for the iTunes, I'm just curious if they were advocates of the software or the shop. Because I know that there is also a shop called iTunes. So maybe the second sentence says: We, as the first ones, thought that the idea of opening an internet store iTunes was a good idea and we encouraged other artists to support this idea.

cheers

Avangi · Answer

Yes, of course. "Mobile music!"

Ahhhh'll be back.

Newguest · Answer

Hi

I read it a few more times and I'm wondering why they wanted (their manager wanted) the band to appear on TV? Is he talking about TV commercials in which the band would take part or is he talking about music videos of the band that would be shown on TV, so in this way they would advertise their songs, people would hear them and they would be more willing to buy their records and then the band would make more money????

Avangi · Answer

Hi,

<< As for the iTunes, I'm just curious if they were advocates of the software or the shop. >>
It seems that this is more about marketing than about selling. To me, this is the significant part of the McGuinness quote:

<< spent most of 2004 talking to Vodafone, Nokia, Hewlett-Packard, Intel and T.Mobile, trying to find a way in which our brands could cooperate for mutual benefit without being embarrassing. I nearly pulled this off, but in the end I couldn't sell it to the band. - - - - they didn't want the accusations of selling out >>

The "embarrassing" part was the point of view I was originally trying to express.

<< get our music on television in a dignified and honorable manner. >>

This just seemed like an impossible thing for musicians with pride in their work. But, hey, a buck is a buck!

McGuinness wrote earlier:

<< In the past we had never worked with advertisers or sponsors. The only time we'd ever allowed U2 music to be used in a commercial way was in a movie. >>

This idea certainly rang true with me, as "serious" musicians have always been opposed to prostituting their music.

This quote was interesting too:

<< The music business markets itself by infiltrating other free media. It is very skilful at promoting its wares through radio, televison and press rather than buying advertising space.>>
Of course he's speaking as a manager, not as a musician. I think the conflict runs all through this.

I don't watch TV, so I don't know how this works. I can remember years ago seeing the kids watch MTV, which I guess was made up of music videos.

But the thing I had missed completely was the importance of mobile music. If marketing, selling, and listening are all to be done via cell phone, it's a whole new world.

But at last reading, the bottom line was:

<< rather disappointingly, none of the deals on the table were consummated. Meanwhile we were talking to Apple.

We already had a relationship with Apple. We were one of the first adopters of iTunes and encouraged other artists to support iTunes right at the beginning of 2002. >>

So that was seven and a half years ago. - A.

Re "supporters" of the iTune software or the iTune shop, I don't know what the expression "adopters of iTunes" means. I would think supporters of the company - at least from McGuiness' point of view. I suppose they're talking about some kind of long term financial arrangement with Apple. But what do I know?

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