The record industry has approached Apple’s App store with a somewhat amusing amount of hesitation. When the App Store first launched last summer, a few major artists tested the waters with some obnoxiously basic apps, sometimes consisting of little more than a splash screen and a handful of their songs. But things are beginning to change. Leading the charge has been Nine Inch Nails, which partnered with Tapulous last fall to release a special NIN version of Tap Tap Revenge and more recently launched a robust ‘NIN Access’ app that offers fans a library of rich media, news, and social features. The app’s reception has been overwhelmingly positive, with over 75% of reviewers giving it five stars.
Now the major record labels (and countless indie bands) are looking to get in on the action. Enter Mobile Roadie, a new application platform that allows bands to quickly deploy their own custom applications to the App Store. For a relatively small fee, bands can use Mobile Roadie’s mostly-automated system to build their apps and have them posted to Apple’s App Store in as little as a week (and the majority of the wait is from Apple’s still-mysterious approval process).
The application supports a wide range of content, including photo galleries, streaming music (which can be linked to songs for purchase on iTunes), YouTube videos, a list of upcoming shows, and interactive features, like a ‘fan wall’ where users can post comments and photos in real time for all to see. On the backend, bands will have access to an intuitive CMS, where they’ll be able to update photos and video, manage comments, and post news stories. They can also choose what price they’d like their app to sell for on the App Store.
CEO Michael Schneider acknowledges that there are other media platforms available, like Kyte, but says that these can run thousands of dollars apiece. Mobile Roadie is substantially cheaper, running $399 for intitial setup and then $29 a month after that. For larger bands that receive over 1000 installs, there’s an additional 1 cent per month, per install charge. The company is currently in talks with every major record label (some of which are already testing the app), and has forged an exclusive partnership with The Orchard, a leading indie distributor.
I’ve tried out a few of Mobile Roadie’s apps, and for the most part they seem to work quite well (though if a band doesn’t upload many media assets the app feels a bit barren). The company has positioned itself well in a space that is about to really take off, especially once the iPhone 3.0 software hits and users will be able to see updates in realtime from their favorite bands without having to open the application manually.
If you’d like to check out a band’s app built on the Mobile Roadie platform, you can see a directory of their apps here.
I love it – looking amazing, nice job Mike!
Ya That thing look really gr8. Well I think they got the idea of that name from an Indian reality show “MTV Roadies” :-0
http://www.smartbloggerz.com
The website shows what looks liek an iphone. Apple may sue them.
I wonder if you would be able to create an app for something other than a band, maybe for a music blog?
Hi Carlos,
While Mobile Roadie is geared towards bands, you can create an App for anything, as long as the different areas of the App work for you.
Michael
Very cool idea. Now I just wish I was in a band…
Dear Mr Schneider or whoever else decides to reply,
What is the actual cost of this?
Quite honestly, I could be blind…but I don’t see it stated in the terms of service…. lil help?
Many Thanks,
Adjoa
Hey adjoa, $399 setup, $29 p/m https://www.mob...om/home/pricing
We do almost the same thing on NeoMusicStore, starting at only $129
And there’s no such “audience fee”
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Yeeesh too bad the NeoMusicStore.com site looks it was built in MS Word…
It’s actually quite misleading how they advertise the price of a Mobile Roadie app. Of course they’d like you to believe it’s only $399 + $29/month and if that were true it would be quite a deal but if you read the fine print there’s more to the story.
In addition to the above they also charge $0.01/month for every copy of your app that’s been downloaded (the first 1,000 are included in the $29/month.) So if your app is actually successful, if it’s downloaded by a large number of fans then things get very expensive very quickly and the true cost of the app could be thousands of dollars per year. There are also potential additional bandwidth fees if you really drill down into the fine print.
So I did a little spreadsheet math to calculate what the true cost is over a two-year period:
If 1,000 fans/month download your app the total cost to you over two years is $3,855.
If 2,000 fans/month download your app the total cost to you over two years is $6,855.
If 5,000 fans/month download your app the total cost to you over two years is $15,855.
So if you just want an iPhone app to show off to your family and friends and you don’t plan on being very successful then Mobile Roadie looks like a good “vanity play.” If, on the other hand, your band actually has a following and a fan base then this could get expensive very quickly. There are probably other developers out there who could build you an app for around $5K that is more customized and won’t charge you anything/month/fan.
Hi Vinnie,
You are correct that after the first 1,000 there is an extra charge. The reason for this is we incur additional bandwidth costs to serve more music/photos/text and need to cover those, as the App gets more and more popular.
The flip side to this is if the App has 5,000 or 50,000 downloads, proportionally the band/artist is going to be selling a lot more music and show tickets via the App, which will more than cover the cost of the App. Additionally, if they are charging for the App, obviously the more they sell the more they’ll make.
Our pricing is not meant to be misleading in any way and is clearly posted. Additionally, we are continuously improving the product and adding features; I highly doubt it would be less expensive for any artist to develop and then maintain and improve this themselves. Our artists have the benefit of the entire Mobile Roadie team constantly thinking about and improving the product, included in the price.
Hi Michael,
You say: “Our pricing is not meant to be misleading in any way and is clearly posted.” Really? I guess that explains why the additional bandwidth fees and the additional $0.01/month for every copy of your app that’s been downloaded are nowhere to be found on your “pricing” page.
Whatever you choose to charge for your apps is fine, that’s your business, but as a potential client I’m bothered by the fact that your “pricing” page doesn’t include the full details.
Vinnie,
Go here:
https://www.mob...om/home/pricing
and look in the right column “What am I paying for?”
It clearly states the $.01/month/install, over 1,000 installs.
How is that unclear?
Michael
Mobile Roadie is OK if a band has no startup money and needs an app of some kind asap. Otherwise Vinnie is right on, a band will end up spending much more over a few years with Mobile Roadie than if they spend the $$ upfront and get their own dedicated app. The Toy Lounge http://thetoylounge.com will create a standalone app for a band or musician/artist for much less. The important thing is to get exposure for your craft and also get paid for it.
It’s misleading to say that an iPhone App company can simply create you your own iPhone App.
First of all, the iPhone App is half the battle. It’s the CMS powering it that makes it a truely useful marketing tool. Mobile Roadie clients can change anything in their App and the update is pushed out instantly to all of their installed Apps worldwide. Putting a CMS like this together is far more complex than simply building a static iPhone App.
Secondly, we are investing a lot in R&D and product development; the features Mobile Roadie will be rolling out over the next six months would cost tens of thousands to create on your own, but are most will be available to our customers as part of their license fee (no additional charge).
It is possible that a popular artist could save money by developing their own App, but to then frequently update it, add to it, and push it forward, they’re going to have to be in the tech business, working with developers. I believe they rather do what they do best – make music – and leave the tech to the techies.
Michael
Christopher Stolee thinks Mobile Roadie is a great idea for bands that want a simple iPhone app and want to be able to make quick updates on the fly.
Christopher Stolee is not in a band but does play rudimentary bass guitar when he’s all by himself.