There’s so much new stuff going on in the world of online music, I’ve hardly had time to stop and get my head around it – let alone report it. Of course, much of what’s new is only new to me and may in fact have been around for quite some time. And a lot of what’s new to me is only new in the sense that I finally understand and see the value in it – not that I didn’t already know about it.

There are quite a few interesting things that I’ve been mulling over the last little while and it’s about time I shared. These are things that you may not have considered as part of your music consumption and production practices, but whether you’re a music maker or a music listener (or, probably, both), might offer new opportunities.

So this is the first in what will be an occasional series: Overlooked music services.

Weed
Weed is a concept in music distribution that takes a little familiarisation, but it’s quite an exciting concept. The hopeful ‘spreads like a weed’ principle may be a little ambitious, but I like the pyramid scheme approach.

Essentially, you get the music free to listen to a few times, buy it, send it to friends, and they can listen then choose to buy too. The kicker is that if they buy it – or the people they send it to buy it, then you get paid for recommending it.

For the music listener, a chance to listen properly before you buy, a chance to contribute in a rewarding fashion, and a chance for a kickback for spreading the word. For the artist, legitimate sales and a self-perpetuating promotional engine of new fans.

First heard about Weed just under a year ago. Understood it today. Go have a look.