The punk economy

listen.

artists need to make money to eat and to continue to make art.

artists used to rely on middlemen to collect their money on their behalf, thereby rendering themselves innocent of cash-handling in the public eye.

artists will now be coming straight to you (yes YOU, you who want their music, their films, their books) for their paychecks.
please welcome them. please help them. please do not make them feel badly about asking you directly for money.
dead serious: this is the way shit is going to work from now on and it will work best if we all embrace it and don’t fight it.

Amanda Palmer

24 thoughts on “The punk economy”

  2. So true. I’ve been wondering though, as I set out on my own trying to do just that (having left EA two months ago) – it actually seems harder to convince a large number of people to donate a little for something they’d be interested in, than it has been to, traditionally, convince one of a handful of people/gatekeepers that your work is worthwhile. Hopefully that will change as people become more accepting of the new patronage process.

  3. Things needs to change. That’s what Miss Palmer is talking about. It’s absurd to have to sell hundreds of thousands of copies of a game just to pay the publishers and console owners while you could get by on your own with just a few tens of thousand copies sold.

  5. One interesting side effect of the punk economy as opposed to the traditionally centralized model is that being an arrogant jerk about your decadent income and lifestyle carries a greater risk that your audience will be put off and less inclined to subsidize said lifestyle.

  6. That’s probably not a bad thing in most cases. As much as the audience should take up its responsibility to support the artists whose work they enjoy, the artists should use that money responsibly. Of course, there may be border cases, where the decdadent life style is part of the art :)

  7. In terms of # of copies sold, absolutely. But is it easier to convince 10,000 people to give a little bit of money, or one person to give the same amount? I had thought the former, bur as I try to do so, it seems more like the latter.

  8. Yes, Borut, that is still true in many cases. But this is where evolution needs to happen. Up until now, people have had to except whatever big companies are willing to give them. They have grown used to this limitation of choice and to the fact that they don’t really want those things and therefore need to be persuaded. The “punk economy” that is made possible by the internet removes the need for these middle men and puts the responsibility of choice in the hands of the public. If the public does not change its attitude and continues to sit back and wait for the big corporations to give them stuff, nothing will change. It is the public that needs to actively embrace this opportunity! Not just the artists.

    The punk economy is about creating small self-sustaining eco-systems to replace the huge one way channels where you simply persuade people to buy your stuff. But, as Miss Palmer points out in her post, this requires a change in attitude in the audience.

  9. “We take credit card and give review copies :)”

    I would ask for a review copy, but then realize you are so reasonable with your pricing that I would rather support you and make sure ‘8’ gets back into production.

  10. I find it a interesting solution for the problems derivated from vicious capitalism for independent circles of developers and relatively capable of working well.

    Another thing I think should erased is be the figure of the intermediaries. I don’t know why so many people operate between the artist and the public: publishers, editors, producers and the list goes long on. I think they use to interfere negatively on the communicative process between artist and the people that want to enjoy the artist’s work. They do things as actively polluting artist’s intentions by modifying their work, and what’s even worse, they create a distance too huge between artist and audience, that totally disconnects two parts that should be in tight contact.

    All these things were understandable when internet and digital downloads didn’t exist but now they are pointless.

  11. @Michaël Samyn – Yes, but you’d never give one to me 😛

    Joking aside, like DoFuss I think I would prefer to support Tale of Tales through monetary means rather than have the private joy of playing one of your games early.

    “[Middle-men] create a distance too huge between artist and audience, that totally disconnects two parts that should be in tight contact.” – This close connection between artist and consumer is increasingly working in both group’s favour. The artist benefits from direct feedback and the consumer’s increased interest in paying for the product, and the consumer benefits from having the insight into the artist’s intentions and method to name just a few.

    If we saw The Path or Fatale as just more games pumped out by a face-less publisher, I am sure there would be a drastically lower level of sales and a worse experience all around.

  12. Totally agree with you, Chris.

    Take for instance this blog, the fact that Michaël and Auriea post here their opinions, thoughts, intentions, etc. and what’s more important, the fact that we are able to openly and actively communicate via exchanging some comments with them creates a strong and powerful link that allows us -or at least me- to empathize better with them.

    Honestly, if by any chance you (Michaël, Auriea or whoever involved with Tale-of-Tales) posted here you needed money to finance Salome, I totally would have given my money to see your work finished.

  13. Borrow a page from my book: I got a review copy of The Path early on – much obliged – and since then I’ve purchased the game on five different occasions and offered them to different friends. Hopefully I’ll get my sixth copy soon!

    Like Michaël said some months ago, why not sell games in a similar fashion to that of art? If a Tale of Tales was sold for 200€, I’d still try to purchase should it interest me. I think that this is easily understandable for someone who comes from the world of arts. The sales model used in the videogames industry serves the purpose of selling industrial games. So I think the Path is worth all my five purchases – perhaps even more. In a way it’s like supporting a cause that is helping videogames become something I personally admire.

  14. diebussy – Hey, I like that idea. Hadn’t thought of it. Those who are lucky enough to receive review copies support the game and spread knowledge of it even further… yes.

  15. @ Chris Fox: seems like you’re really craving for a review copy of the game! Why not ask, Michaël and Auriea can be quite reasonable from time to time, you know? 😉

    Although I wouldn’t disturb them today. I think that they need all the concentration they can get so… shhhh… (whispering) tomorrow is a big day!

    /me takes his shoes off and walks quietly out of the blog.

  16. I don’t mean to sound like I’m begging or fishing for charity 😛 I’m just talking here. As I said in the first comment – I’m a wanna-be journo. On my home blog KeysAkimbo my hits peak at 40 on a good day 😛 I’ve written a couple of things for Touché Bitches, nothing really worth mentioning. I’m just a customer who talks too much. So I should probably stop talking now…

    Anyway, whoo for Monday. Gonna be a packed day.

  19. I think that scaling off the layeres between consumers and artists is indeed a very positive thing. Without this blog and the The Path development blog, which holds much interesting information, I’m quite sure I would have soon forgotten about The Path and never bought it.

  20. Borrow a page from my book: I got a review copy of The Path early on – much obliged – and since then I’ve purchased the game on five different occasions and offered them to different friends. Hopefully I’ll get my sixth copy soon!

  21. I find it a interesting solution for the problems derivated from vicious capitalism for independent circles of developers and relatively capable of working well.

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