Devoted to show business and the entertainment industry

The Radiohead experiment to release their "In Rainbows" album digitally for whatever people wanted to pay for it looks like it's paying off, as the release of the same album via CD is set be the No. 1 album in the UK for 2008.

I think Radiohead and their experiment is a possible glimpse at what we'll see more of, both now and in the near future.

While we hear most people saying the CD is dead as a way to listen to music, I think they're wrong there. At the same time, we'll never see a return to the past with the CD being the dominant way to consume music.

What Radiohead is showing is we'll probably be experiencing a hybrid music world in the foreseeable future.

As HMV's Gennaro Castaldo said: "As true fans we love to buy and collect albums by our favourite artists in their physical form while also having the opportunity to create our favourite playlists via downloads.

"The simple truth is we want to have the best of both worlds - to be able to mix and match between physical and digital music. As retailers we're doing more and more to cater to this growing trend."

Castaldo adds that it points to the ongoing appeal of the CD.

I agree with Castaldo in the limited way I mentioned, that the CD should remain a viable way to listen to music, just not anywhere near as dominantly as in the past.

Sales over the Christmas season confirm this, as CD sales plunged by 21 percent during the busy shopping season, according to Nielsen SoundScan. That drop in sales isn't anywhere near to being over either. The attraction of CDs for now is their superior quality over digital forms.

For those looking at ways to market themselves and break into the industry, I think the way Radiohead has attempted this is a great lesson.

Many aren't aware of the somewhat underground marketing tendencies over the last several years. People are marketing their works (not just music) for free to gain attention and a fan or customer base. Once a person is known to a core customer base, they can at that time sell a variety of products across different platforms. This is of course what Radiohead is doing now. It's working!

With Radiohead only getting about 33 percent of downloaders to pay something for the digital download, many only called it a partial success. The problem with that is their story is far from over with "In Rainbows." The first week of sales in the UK is expected to reach about 50,000. Not a great amount, but not bad either. This slower time of the year is what makes it a No. 1 hit.

Now that this is happening, they will also end up selling other CDs across the world. That story of course has yet to be told.

In the end, they are a far way from being declared only partially successful. The new media marketing world has already been penetrated by the band, and they have been extremely successful. Measuring can no longer be done by the simple mathematics of counting how many digital downloads etc.

What about the value of the marketing and buzz created by their story? That's extremely valuable, but difficult to measure by revenue or units sold.

If nothing else, the band has extended its brand far beyond anything they could have by doing things in the usual way. I would bet that hundreds of thousands that had never heard of them before are now aware of them, and some of them I'm sure have become buying fans.

I think they're a glimpse into what the music world is going to look like for some time ahead. The retailers and companies better get on board quickly. Unbelievably, a number of them are still having difficulty accepting this as the new reality.

Related Coverage:

Radiohead Releasing "In Rainbows" Physical Album December 31

Radiohead After the Hype: How'd they do?

Radiohead Releasing Newest Album as Download Only First

Radiohead Taking Charge of their own Destiny

Radiohead In Rainbows Download Goes Live

Radiohead's 'In Rainbow' - Free - Pay-what-you-wish