This article does not attempt to answer the obvious, fascinating question at hand: "How do pre-release online sales affect in-store sales, in terms of units and total profit?" I suspect that artist-to-fan internet sales affect demand elasticity in unknown ways, and for all the confounding variables at play, this seems like a valuable data point.
The reason I posted is that In Rainbows was released earlier under a "pay what you want scheme". Many more people downloaded the album that way. They also solve an $80 disc box with a ton of stuff for fans.
They also make money touring, because fans love live shows.
That is exactly the way artists will continue to make money: give fans what they want, in convenient formats. Let the fans directly support the artists.
As for the record companies, they are going to have to agree to creative distribution models that NIN and Radiohead are pioneering.
