Not sure I follow. So you are dismissing PH because some people are publicly asking publicly for instead of via gchat, gmail and FB like ppl do for HN?
I'll just add two quick things - First, we have the ability to create a more unique and interesting experience on a native application than via the web. For example, we can access a fan's iTunes library and Facebook with just one click. Thats pretty much impossible on the web. Second, this is just our first product. We plan to bring Merchbar everywhere, hopefully one day somewhere you'll love it.
1. Show them technology they can't (or haven't made themselves)
2. Build a team that has a history of making the industry money - my co-founder was the first person to sell rock shirts in mass retail (read: $$$)
3. Make something artists want.
I agree - I downloaded and played for at least a couple weeks. Important note: I'm not a gamer and rarely ever get caught up in a game for that amount of time.
1. "iTunes is also the preferred tool for listening to pirated music, which generates nothing for artists."
Spotify has paid out $1B in 9 years. iTunes is paying out over $1B PER QUARTER. [1]
2. Spotify also has an ARPU cap ($120/yr) - Not only do none of their competitors have this, but it is likely others will find ways to increase APRU (better video CPMs or iTunes exclusives are just a few options). This will likely make Spotify a less appealing distribution option going forward.
3. It seems implausible Spotify is the cause for reduced piracy - YouTube has 10x the content, $0 cost, no need to download an application or creating an account and has 50x the user base.
[1] - Don't worry, I'm not including app sales in this figure.
Key points that as I discussed with Keith became clear we were using different definitions:
What is a blog? I'd content any direct communication with the internet at large is in the intent of "blogging".
Which CEOs should count? I have no idea. But for fun lets say $100M+ valued companies.
Does frequency matter? To Keith it does but I think its beside the point.
Does it have to be written personally by the CEO? I would argue not. Many blogs (Svbtle, Medium, Sequoia's) include editing or content help.
So...
If you use the above criteria many many many CEOs blog. From Steve Jobs' letters explaining why Apple has it's stance on Adobe to Elon Musk's discussions about cars catching on fire. Then there are the by almost any definition bloggers mentioned elsewhere in this thread.
TL,DR: "This experience has taught me one very important lesson: without congressional action or a strong judicial precedent, I would _strongly_ recommend against anyone trusting their private data to a company with physical ties to the United States."
I love when products go deep for their core users. This is one of the best ideas and executions I've seen among any of the companies trying to create marketplaces for digital goods.
Thanks for the feedback. It's something we have considered but decided against it for launch. Eventually we imagine the phone will be where we do 95% of our communication with non-enterprise users. We need to build a platform that lets us communicate with all of them quickly and easily. Mobile web will definitely be part of that!
We went user controlled because we wanted people to be able to guide their own experience. We watched a bunch of people use the app and noticed people went a very different speeds.
It turned out that we show so little at a time that people went through the deck in two ways: very slowly or very quickly. We couldn't have allowed both to do that with an auto-play or video function.