Karaoke Forums

.....you're asking the wrong people......it could put us out of business, and make our karaoke song investment a non-factor in the business.

like

Hmmm....Touch Tunes, Ecast & other jukebox manus rely on connection. Maybe follow similar utilization. Library would be available, however once cued is downloaded locally as purchase. So charge for the availability & nominal fee for possession. I as well as others have thousands of songs that may never be sung. Also believe this could reduce the amount of piracy making it affordable. Karaoke laws will never be established until there is a uniform delivery mechanism. A karaoke lounge streams to individual rooms. With todays technology you could stream to various venues. Look forward to future discussion

Could also include (like a jukebox), other entertainment fees, that a bar owner confronts, reducing his cost, and reducing the chance he'll hire me instead....

I just found the link i was looking for. This is EXACTLY what I would like to see for karaoke.

http://www.discjockeymusicsupply.com/faq.php#owndrive

You buy the drive with an initial amount of music, then you pay a monthly subcription fee to cover licensing and for the ability to download any updates from a secure server.

I would pay any reasonable sum for that priviledge.

The interesting thing is if you could find the technology to sync the graphics on the fly then you could do this with just regular mp3s and the licensing already exists both in Canada and the US.

Outstanding feedback, folks, keep 'em coming.

I realize I was light on details in my initial question - that was intentional so that I could get everyone's impressions up front. I'll have some more details on our thoughts about this type of product coming later.

Apologies for the off-topic here....



TouchTunes has a number of songs available locally. The also have the 'vast library' available to download there and then at a premium. But... once downloaded it is not necessarily available in the local library. Also (and this is the fun part) if the internet connection goes down you can still search the 'vast library' and although many songs are unavailable, some songs are yet still magically downloadable. Why? These songs ARE actually on the local jukebox HD but being sold as premium download tracks for 2 credits instead of 1!

And now back to our scheduled discussion...

So, from a karaoke point of view you would want offline access to the 'Essential 4500' and online access to additional songs. By offering only CB tracks in your show the ASCAP BMI et al could be covered at the subscription point rather than the venue (just the the jukebox companies do). I still see issues with songbooks unless these go all digital too.

Basically the subscription idea could eventually lead to the elimination of local hosting companies and their profits and centralize them with the provider of the subscription service. This would make KJs more like running a Chartbuster Karaoke franchise than running their own show.

- Jonn

It's bad enough that the pirates are putting us out of business, now the manufacturers want to put us out of business, too.

DITTO THAT!!!!!!

And speaking for those of us KJ's that host out in the BOONIES, where I have 2 bars that I host at the only internet connection is DIAL-UP.

One of the other bars I host at has high-speed internet available in the town, but they have no use for internet at the bar. How am I as a KJ host going to be able to talk them paying $70+/month for internet access just so they can have karaoke, and pay me more $$$ that I currently charge because I stream my karaoke.


How about a better business idea......
Offer all new songs that CB puts out as HIGH QUALITY (320kbps) mp3+G downloads for a decent price (1$-2$ per song). And if I want the song I can download it on the fly at a show that has a internet connection.

BTW....My GIG computer NEVER EVER NEVER NEVER NEVER goes on the internet!!!!!!!!


To sum up.....No, I would never subscribe to a streaming karaoke service. But for home use, good idea.

Certainly an interesting idea, but if you walk into the wrong brick building or venue and have no connection, you're pretty much screwed. I pondered just this thing last night as I sat in a restaurant where I could not get a connection.

Birdofsong

I agree with both of the above. However, I'd also like to point out something for Chartbuster's benefit: You think piracy exploded after public use of PCs and MP3s? This would make that look like a walk in the park. Nothing is easier to pirate than a signal, scrambled, coded, or otherwise.

Not only that, but what if the output quality at a particular venue is bad. It's your product, as well as the KJ that looks bad.

Also, if I were PC based, I wouldn't want to be limited to a single mfr. You mentioned that being able to use other tracks would negate legality of the use of your product.

One other thing, and this is a biggie: Unless something about streaming circumvents the current U.S. laws regarding downloads ( and it may, I just don't know), no karaoke producer can make using these tracks in a show LEGAL- but can only claim that the use of the product is ok with THAT mfr..

Either way, I agree with the above that this product seems to be aimed at the venues, as were those big red CAVS coin operated karaoke jukeboxes. They didn't go over well in my area....A good host does.

Still, all in all, a cool idea, and shows creative thinking. For that you get kudos!

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

Oh baby! Gotta use the P word. Any of them that are sweating now, have a chance to get back on equal terms with those of us who have built our libaries the old fashinoed way. Sounds like if all KJs went this method, all would have the same libary. Taking out the "personlized" library.

I see no benefit in this for myself or others like me. Owners, yep. Pirates, yet. Newbies, yep. Established KJs with established libraries, nope.

I only use the 'net on my laptops for upgrading my software and THAT is all! Chances of my show going bad due to a virus or a slow connection are non existence now.

Looking forward I would almost PAY you NOT to have this type of system!

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KingBing Entertainment C'mon Up! I have a song for you!!! [font=MS Sans Serif][/font]

There was a member of the forum who came up with this idea last year (?) and it was discussed for a page or two. I just can't seem to find the thread. I THINK the member had the avatar that was a blue backgbround with "Peace" written on it, if anyone remembers.

We non streaming hosts might have yet an edge since the only stuff Chartbuster knows how to make right is country. I'll pit my Sound Choice library against chartbusters anyday once I get the gem series.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

Leopard, was it ANGEL ?

Rosario

Just to play devil's advocate here. How many people have heard the arguement "Digital Jukeboxes are going to put DJs out of work. Why would anyone pay the expense of live entertainment when a person can just press a button and get the song they want"


I heard that quite a bit when the jukeboxes first came out. The only thing digital jukeboxes did was put BAD djs out of work. Anyone still worth hiring doesn't seem to have any problems finding work. At least where I live


-James

Bingo. Why hire a cheap pirate with no people skills, ONLY 100,000 songs that are mostly dupes and increased risk of annoying lawsuits , when you can put in a cheap sound system better than the pirates, hire minimum wage flunkies to run it, and make more profit?

The only ones worth hiring will be the ones that can actually entertain. I think this is the wave of the future, whether ya like it or not.

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Dave's not here.

The only valid argument against this idea is the lack of stable bandwidth.



Very true.....
did they not said that radio is going to die when TV arrived?



you can still play your customers' disc (if you want to)when you you go the HD way, what is there to prevent you from using what you already have in your HD to compliment the streamed files?



just get use to it and be prepared when it comes...

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I can neither confirm nor deny ever having or knowing anything about nothing.... mrscott

1)I don't think I would but:
2)$50 a month
3)Must be backwards compatable since you don't have every song made on karaoke be able to play outside karaoke (DISC, MP3+G) without having to go outside of the program to play it.
4) yes only available to professional Mobile Karaoke hosting companies so that bars can't go behind our backs and cut us out of the loop.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

You know in a perfect world wherever that might be, maybe bar owners do notice the difference between a good host and a bad one. I'm sure there are a few out there even in this reality, but at least when I was back on the old Jolt forum I recall hearing sad stories from several KJs who seemed very professional discussing losing shows to an under-cutter who came along and dangled a lower price.

These KJS had come to a dead bar, taken less money to build the shows up, spent hours of their time marketing and promoting the shows and finally built it up to where they started to make a little money and then what happens?

Did all that sweat really mean anything to the owner? Nope, along comes the under-cutter dangling a lower price and the original host was sent packing. How many of their singers followed them? Well sometimes they did if the move was close enough and that was always a delight to read about, especially when the first show died and the owner had to approach them with their hats in their hands, but how often does that really happen? It's sad, but geography has an amazing impact on who people choose to spend their time with.