Cho PD slams the practice of 'bulk buying' by labels and fan clubs

[gloomyclock.livejournal.com]

“What we need for the growth of our music industry is not expediency but rather the syndrome within the market”.

The music industry’s straight shooter Cho PD slammed the practices of album ‘Bulk buying’, believed to be practiced by certain labels. He didn’t name the label in specific nor did he point his finger to a specific group, but his statement is sure to make quite the controversy in the coming days.

The album bulk buying is a form a scam believed to be practiced by some of the labels, it is sometimes carried out with the help of their fan club or they hire a 3rd party who does the buying for them. The labels then win the 1st place on TV music programs with their groups and they put their name out there, winning endorsement deals, TV contracts and so forth. Many industry insiders attest that it’s a secret that everyone knows, but the judgment is still out there.

Cho PD is not only a rapper himself but he’s also the producer of the group ‘Block B’. He stated on the 16th, “I want to talk about bubbles and bulk buying”.

If you go to record retailers or to concerts (he means TV music program pre-recordings), you feel the reaction of the audience on hand right away. Someone wins #1 on the chart but the reaction of the audience is rather cold, I ask if that isn’t the sign of bubble”.

He continued, “You can make bunch of TV appearances and even buy albums both in physical and in digital format in bulk, but that’s only on the surface and it’s not a real success, so it can’t continue. The bubble pops in a year or two, so in a way it doesn’t even need to be criticized”.

Cho PD laments the fact that singers need to be good in variety and even debut as actors to thrive in the industry.

Cho PD ended his statement saying, “It is important to get closer to the public with activities outside of music such as making TV appearances. However, you have your priorities backwards if you are trying to become the best (singer) with only those activities”.

Source: kpopfever + Nate

Mods: kpopfever does not actually link to the original article, they just link to Nate (idk why). I found something vaguely similar though, so hopefully that works.

Comments

[falling-empress.livejournal.com]

uuuuuuuum yup. not surprising.

[hurtmybones.livejournal.com]

Is he mad bcz he doesn't have the ₩₩₩ 2 back Block B's albums?

[icierrrrrblue.livejournal.com]

l m a o, just because people bulk buy Block B's album and they still don't get high numbers doesn't mean he should be going up everyone else's asses.

[in-noctem.livejournal.com]

What he means is the company buying back the albums (how do they make money if they do that?) instead of fans pooling money and then buying the albums in bulk right? Because I don't see anything wrong with the latter. MBLAQ fans did that for This Is War/100% ver and from what I heard, it's actually a really tedious process.

I really have no idea how the music industry works, especially in Korea.

[strawberry-efeu.livejournal.com]

It's because music companies in S. Korea are making minimal amounts of money from the music, but a lot of money from advertisements. So, if a group seems to be popular because of a company's bulk-buying (especially if they get #1 on MuBank or Inki) then they're likely to be offered advertisements and other lucrative opportunities.

[in-noctem.livejournal.com]

Hmm, seems like it's less about the music and more about getting CFs and endorsements which is kinda sad. Thanks for the explanation!

[a-cheshire-grin.livejournal.com]

Kinda sad indeed!

[asnindie.livejournal.com]

Lol well yeah for most it is because that's how they make their money. In the end they're a business.

[tsuyoi-hikari.livejournal.com]

It's always been like that in Korea. Their fans are crazy and very protective of their idols, but they rarely spent money on them. That's why their idols entering other markets esp Japan which promised more success and money. They got more money just by spending one week in Japan than the money they earn by staying a whole year in Korea.

[albeitalways.livejournal.com]

i disagree w/ the bit that korean fans rarely spend money on them. fyi, just by looking at the gifts korean fanclubs give to their idols, the idea of korean fans as stingy w/ their wallets is one thing that will not cross your mind. numerous examples, like gd's personalized lv sneakers, or the various gift giving donations fanclubs do to charities etc., will show that money is no problem w/ them.

in fact, that's exactly the problem w/ the korean music industry. unless you have a massive fanbase that will hoard all 1938918314 versions of your latest release, you will not make it in the charts. and if you don't make it in the charts, you don't win awards and don't make money as a result.

the difference in japan is that people are still willing to buy physical releases of albums/singles etc., even the casual fans. and even artists that aren't exactly mainstream or popular can still earn enough to get through. most of j-urban artists are proof of that, they might not get top spots on the charts, but their sales are good enough to keep them going.

[tsuyoi-hikari.livejournal.com]

Sorry, I should be more specific. It's true that Korean fans didn't support their artists by buying their music -- but it is actually more towards them not buying their artists' physical releases and also the piracy problem which is rampant in their country.

I know how the spent money on their idols. It's actually kinda scary since they always buy foods or expensive things for their fave idols. Hee Jun even got a couch from his fan. A COUCH! XD

What I'm trying to say is that their market is dying due to their fans unwillingness to spent on their physical albums or perhaps concerts. DBSK got the biggest official fanclub in the whole world but their Mirotic album only sold around 400k. It's hard to believe that half the fanclub members are even unwilling to buy their full-lengh album -- we're talking about album here not single. Or how Korean artists can make tour in big stadiums all over Japan while they only hold very limited concert with small venues in their home country.

Because of this, we can see why many Korean idols entering the Japan market although they are unrelevent in Korea since Japan is where the money really is.

[in-noctem.livejournal.com]

Oops, I meant digital sales! Wasn't there a big hooha about how TT would have won either way since physical sales don't count for much? I didn't see the scores on either show so I'm not sure how true that is.

[jsham89.livejournal.com]

MBLAQ didn't do CD bulk buys. They fans did a lot of purchasing online to try to raise digital sales, but the company did nothing. Teen Top's company and fandom did the bulk buying and won on Inki and Music bank over MBLAQ as a result.

The whole winning thing on music shows is big b/c it's the best type of promotion. I can see why companies would spend money on such a thing as bulk buying, but it's not beneficial down the road.

(sry about the deleted posts, my netbook layout sucks and messes up the posting :p)

[nimco.livejournal.com]

I hate to agree with him but it's true. Also the fans are just wasting their money since the company at least gets something out of it.

[jaghatar.livejournal.com]

cho pd seems to have hit some commmentators nerve maybe it's their bias doing it keke

[dilettantka.livejournal.com]

Wait... so this whole K-Pop thing isn't about the pure art of music???

[raiha-kasep.livejournal.com]

that was like from many years ago,,lol

[kiminikaeru.livejournal.com]

lol

[fancifury.livejournal.com]

snsd does it imo

[eishastan.livejournal.com]

[sayuai.livejournal.com]

Awesome gif...XD

[eishastan.livejournal.com]

ikr a picture is worth a thousand words.

[annhh.livejournal.com]

Companies buying back is just desperate and shady. Don't know how fan business work but cheating to get wins is hardly the best gift to give your oppas..

He has legit arguments (but his attitude is always angry o_O). Especially about variety shows. TV stations have too much power over artists, which is weird because through artists the station stays alive. Power play, all kinds of wars and fake wins, gotta love kpop

[oystersauce87.livejournal.com]

Aside from brave brothers, i wonder which other companies do this.

[kiminikaeru.livejournal.com]

cube

[oystersauce87.livejournal.com]

oh really? for all?

[kiminikaeru.livejournal.com]

idk but they did it for 4minutes left

[albeitalways.livejournal.com]

i'm pretty sure they don't need to do it for beast.

[asnindie.livejournal.com]

Everyone does it, especially when the group is young.

[honeebs.livejournal.com]

Same thing can be said for voting. The mblaq/ftisland thing is so silly it takes away from their wins imo.

[oystersauce87.livejournal.com]

what mblaq/ftisland thing?

[honeebs.livejournal.com]

Fans for each voted for each other on agreed dates giving each groups major votes to win.
There were twitter and tumblr posts letting everyone know what was going on and instructions to attack the system until it closed.
btw Rain does not approve. >.>

[oystersauce87.livejournal.com]

but i heard it didn't work

[bestworsthings.livejournal.com]

All groups have had this happen for them. This also isn't limited to Kpop, I know there are companies in Japan that "time" releases to ensure no1s when there was less competition.....and doesn't the American chart work on "copies shipped"? So stores can have thousands of copies rotting on their shelves, but they already count for charting purposes...? I'm sure I remember this even in the mid-90s when the Spice Girls broke up and there was some accusations of the girls' solo albums/singles being stacked in the charts. But I don't really remember that well....

He's kidding himself that fans will stop in the short term. IMHO Kpop needs to stop being so commercial and cannibalistic before they can try and snuff out stacking purchases for any group. Songs need to age better, and the constant promotion cycle needs to slow down - let people actually appreciate these songs before the next one cycles through. The constant GOGOGO nature of Kpop encourages these kinds of panic buys to get number 1s that he hates!

As much as I love my groups, I'd never buy multiple copies of one album. I buy repackages sometimes and I have bought multiple versions of Ayumi Hamasaki's albums and singles, but that's my inner collector getting the different covers or exclusive tracks :P Photocards aren't enough to make me buy multiple albums - I just keep them as a reminder of my bonus - I'm not sinking $200+ to get my bias. It's not worth it.

[bamboolover.livejournal.com]

Picking a release date to ensure best chart position is normal practice in music industry around the world. Avex used to buy albums/singles of their own artists in the past. In America certifications are based on shippments. As for charts, they have a rule that if you for example buy five albums in one transaction it will count as one purchase for chart position.

[blubtrflynflats.livejournal.com]

Not surprising though. In the music industry, it's bound to happen. It's so competitive, people die for it.

With that being said, it doesn't excuse him either. Accusations of bulk buying can easily be pointed to larger companies because they obviously have more money. Other than that, maybe it's him being butthurt.

But. I love my oppars and unnirs, so I buy their albums. But later after their promotions have long died, when it is cheaper. Lelz.

[691979082.livejournal.com]

He has a good point but I don't see it changing any time soon. Companies buying albums back to get wins on music shows is basically viewed as the same as they would spend it for advertizing the the album, and they look better in the process because they win an award. It does make me sad because, like he said, it puts new groups in a "bubble" of false acclaim and then when it stops, the groups endorsements and such stop as well. And when the bubble pops, *poof* group is pretty much gone 80% of the time unless they've become regulars on variety shows or get into acting. I mean, for example, JYP has to debut new groups as actors before the music comes out these days, what does that tell you?

[bishieaddict.livejournal.com]

I generally don't, like the us or them mentality if fanclubs. They are over zealous at times. Can't fans be fans of multiartists or just songs in general ? This may be why fans of one artist may not cheer for other artists.

[raiha-kasep.livejournal.com]

this is why I only trust with digital sales,,
management company rarely spend on it,,
or so that i thought,,


cho pd should talk about korean award too,,
lol

[unreal.livejournal.com]

I agree with him about companies buying back their albums. As for fans bulk buying, he just seems butthurt that block b doesn't have enough fans or them having the money to get them a win.

[raiha-kasep.livejournal.com]

ouch,,



hmmm,,,

[kiminikaeru.livejournal.com]

ikr

[anconeous.livejournal.com]

Agree on both points.

[bauci.livejournal.com]

Idk he seems pretty cautious about releasing stuff numbers wise, wasn't the first mini out of stock for a while and people had to wait until they printed more? Same goes for merch, it drove me nuts how fast the first t-shirts sold out so the next time they released it I was on it instantly... and then hoodies were sold out only a couple of days later.

I'm kind of curious how his different approach will work in the long run.

[jaerotic.livejournal.com]

Block b now has 47000 fans in the fancafe and it is one that needs identity verification. i wouldn't argue abt anything else but block b isn't just /that/ nugu anymore. and yes they don't rly have much money lol.

[brianathebard.livejournal.com]

this guy probably h8s every jype artist with a passion. especially 2pm. don't hate them cuz they're beauuuuutiful

[kanbinayume.livejournal.com]

lmfao
I agree with what he says about bulk buying, but almost every company and fanclub does it. I wouldn't be surprised if the super hardcore BBCs do it too.

[luvey.livejournal.com]

i see his point and understand that companies doing buy backs need to stop.

but i disagree about fan clubs. sure there are some who do purchase multiple albums for themselves, but i don't feel that is the the majority....at least with international fans. sometimes it can be less expensive for some to order through fan clubs than going through ebay or various online sources when you add in shipping.

[katiewenchh.livejournal.com]

he always seems so angry and that rubs me the wrong way. however, this:

“It is important to get closer to the public with activities outside of music such as making TV appearances. However, you have your priorities backwards if you are trying to become the best (singer) with only those activities”.

i agree with 110%