New York Times article about Journey & Wal-Mart

[separate_wayz]

An article in the "Media & Advertising" section of the New York Times today mentions Journey and Wal-Mart extensively. Although other bands (specifically The Eagles) are also mentioned, the focus of the article really is Journey.

"For Some Music, It Has to Be Wal-Mart and Nowhere Else"

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/09/busin ... ref=slogin

[amaron]

While it will be great for the band to have another Top 10 album, what happens after the first week? Do they have plans on more promotion? Is there something bigger and better up their sleeves?

If they want to start distancing themselves from the SP era, this album needs to be platinum and they need to get their name out to NEW fans.

[separate_wayz]

Hypothetical question: If Wal-Mart reports units shipped to RIAA, and 500,000 units are shipped to Wal-Mart stores, wouldn't the album go immediately gold?

I guess SoundScan uses UPC (barcode)-scanned units sold rather than units shipped.

I know when I bought my Revelation CD on the first day, the 5 CD-slots that Wal-Mart had on their sales rack for Revelation were pretty well picked-over in the store I went to. (Good to see -- I had hoped I wouldn't see 5 unsold racks of CDs just sitting there.) I didn't see them playing the DVD, but I might go back tonight and see if they are .....

[amaron]

Hypothetical question: If Wal-Mart reports units shipped to RIAA, and 500,000 units are shipped to Wal-Mart stores, wouldn't the album go immediately gold?

I guess SoundScan uses UPC (barcode)-scanned units sold rather than units shipped.

I know when I bought my Revelation CD on the first day, the 5 CD-slots that Wal-Mart had on their sales rack for Revelation were pretty well picked-over in the store I went to. (Good to see -- I had hoped I wouldn't see 5 unsold racks of CDs just sitting there.) I didn't see them playing the DVD, but I might go back tonight and see if they are .....

Yes, that is correct re: RIAA. The Billboard charts rely on Soundscan numbers, which is why you'll have an album go Platinum very quickly, but not stay on the Billboard charts more than a week or two. TBF was an example of this.

[Big J]

Soundscan's a more accurate system, to be sure, though I only bought one and it'll still show two because my disc skipped constantly on What it Takes to Win so I exchanged it.