There's more and more online competitors out there offering indie artists an affordable way to get their music out to the people. They compete with both traditional big label distribution channels, and mp3.com online services. You can get worldwide distribution of your CD on the Internet. Numerous online retailers have formed to help make this task easy for you. But which do you choose? Should you be in ALL of them?

Most programs have a one time setup fee to cover the programming costs of setting up your account. Then, they take a specified fee or percentage of each retail sale, passing the rest on to you. You can place a link on your website to buy your CD, and add it to your promo materials.

Some artists take the "more is better" approach and join all the progams. Others prefer the more personal and less costly option of selecting an exclusive store to carry their products. Read the information at each website to help you make a decision.

Of course, with the free tools and access available from just about any $20-a-month Internet service provider, a musician can whip up a Web site with performance schedules, e-mail, and gig announcement lists. She can encode her own tunes in whatever audio format she chooses -- like RealAudio, so that fans can listen to the music but not own a copy, or a downloadable format like MP3. And she can easily sell her own CDs. (Third-party companies like CCNow will take care of credit card processing of individual CD orders for 9 percent off the top.)
http://www.ccnow.com/

MP3.COM - http://mp3.com/
At mp3.com, fans can select and download tens of thousands of complete songs in MP3 format, then use shareware mp3 players to hear "near CD quality" at virtually no cost. Real Audio versions of each song allow a preview before committing time to downloading the MP3 version. Getting your music on mp3.com is free of charge. They have a simple, non-exclusive agreement that can be terminated by you at any time.
Details: http://www.guitarsite.com/newsletters/990531/6.shtml

MP3.com allows you to sell DAM CD's. What's a DAM CD?
A compact disc containing songs in both MP3 and standard CD audio format. That means you can listen to them from a regular stereo CD player and your MP3 player. Learn more: http://help.mp3.com/help/faqs/dam.html#01

See also: MP3 MUSIC ON THE WEB
http://www.guitarsite.com/newsletters/991122/11.shtml
Personal Mp3.com Experience by Robert "Lee" Johnson

AMP3.com offers .05 per download (paid for by advertisers, who place a short audio ad in your song file). All artists are eligible for Pick Hit of the Day Award. If your song is selected as a "pick hit", you will earn $50 and be put on the front page. This should result in hundreds of downloads and plenty of royalties. If your song is picked a second time, you'll win Pick Hit Gold Award, which earns you $1,000. If it is selected a third time, you'll win Pick Hit Platinum Award and a check for a cool $10,000! http://amp3.com/.

CD Baby - http://www.cdbaby.com/
Highly regarded in the indie community. For a small set up fee, you get a website and credit card payment. CD Baby ships out your product. They also send you a cool packet of promo goodies when you sign up.

CD Street - http://www.cdstreet.com/
Offers a cool way to sell your CDs on YOUR website. Ship them yourself or have CD Street do it for you. Lots of options, and NO SETUP FEES! Talk to Glenn Gomez, he'll fix you up. Use this special link and get 30% off your first month's processing fees!

Songs.com - http://www.songs.com/
Full service solution for musicians, offering a website and CD sales at a very reasonable price. Artists must undergo a screening process to assure only high quality music is available. Run by musicians.

Degy Shop - http://www.degyshop.com/
Promises to get your CD reviewed just for joining. They also advertise to bring buyers into the store, so you have help selling your CD.

Y2K Music - http://www.y2k-music.co.uk/
Located in England, offering international distribution. Use I.D. Code X419FREE to get FREE signup (save $80!)

EarBuzz.com - http://www.earbuzz.com/
A nifty new store with a cool website and FREE signup. Get an extra free MP3 clip and info by mentioning you saw them on Indie-Music.com

Amazon.com - http://www.amazon.com/advantage
Advantage program is FREE to join, and allows you to place your CD in the biggest online retailer of all. The percentage you receive is less than the other stores, though. But no one will ever say they could not find your CD again.

The Orchard - http://www.theorchard.com/
Deal with these guys and every CD store in the country has the ability to order your CD, including online retailers like Amazon.com and CD Now. The largest Internet retailers can list your CD in their online catalog and order your CD if they actually get a request for it. One-time $40 fee, plus a 30% distribution fee. Through a consignment arrangement with Valley Media, the Orchard offers every artist with finished product, worldwide, non-exclusive distribution. Your music product will be offered for sale at major online record stores: Amazon.com, CD Now, Music Boulevard, plus available on demand in major chain stores. Artists get about $5 for every CD sold. Unless you have your own means to promote it, though, how many people will know about you and ask their store to order your CD for them? Make sure you understand their contract.

Blue Bamboo Music - http://www.bluebamboo.com
FREE WEB SPACE TO SELL YOUR CD by: Christopher Cortez: I am offering free space on my web site to independent musicians to sell their CDs. My deal is a straight consignment arrangement. We sell your disc for $14.00, and pay you $12.00. We also post a RealAudio file of at least one track. The web site will be advertised in a national print ad campaign, scheduled to begin in July. The magazines we are approaching are all musician oriented, so there will be quite a bit of free exposure to anyone posting their material on this site. See this article for details: http://www.guitarsite.com/newsletters/990503/14.shtml

Custom Disc - http://www.customdisc.com
There are several new companies that have sprung up over the past year or so offering music fans the ability to customize their own personal CD compilations. One such company is called CustomDisc. You can select from over 175,000 songs to create a customized CD to fit your exact tastes, at about a dollar per song. CustomDisc does not charge the artists to submit their CDs to the CustomDisc site. They have a standard contract, giving them exclusive rights to include songs from the artist's CD on custom compilations. Ask them to remove the "exclusive" clause before you sign, though!

Indie-Music.com - Great Resource site for networking in all aspects of the music biz! http://indie-music.com/

Internet Underground Music Archive (IUMA) - http://www.iuma.com
IUMA features the music of thousands of independent musicians. They recently announced they would be distributing 25% of their advertising revenue to their artists. IUMA says: "Today, IUMA is the one place to post your music where actual musicians are watching out for you - not weasels watching the numbers. You have your own URL with your band name first. And a custom web page where you can post all your band info and MP3s, sell CDs, create message boards, fan lists, and of course, get e-mail from your fans - all Free. The IUMA mission is simple - for every artist with a record deal, on FM radio, or in Tower Records - there are a thousand talented artists chasing that dream and a million new music fans who will never get to hear their music. We're changing all that - bringing these artists and fans together, getting the music out and giving new music fans a cool new way to discover new music."

Kspace - http://kspace.com
Independent Internet Artists - Do you want to sell your art or music online? Kspace.com claims to promote and distribute the work of independent artists and musicians. They quote their mission as: "to provide a one-stop solution for independent musicians, filmmakers, and artists to sell direct to consumers and license their work to industry professionals"

StreamlineMusic.com - http://www.streamlinemusic.com
StreamlineMusic.com has launched a new business model that may offer the industry giant MP3.com a run for its money. StreamlineMusic.com markets and distributes music giving 100 percent of the profit from sales to the artist or record label. The company will generate its own revenue via advertising sales and sponsorship. You also receive a free web page to promote your music, free music download hosting and streaming, and product fulfillment support.

Pocket Sounds - http://www.pocketsounds.com.au
On-line-only record company under development in Australia

Guitar Music 9 - http://www.guitar9.com/guitarmusic9
"Home of guitar-oriented independent music. The music featured here shines the spotlight on the guitar as the primary instrument, and showcases the guitarist as the dominant force. Guitar Music 9 is a division of Guitar Nine Records, so you'll find this site to be tightly integrated with Guitar Nine's online magazine, instrumental guitar releases and order fulfillment"

Guitar Nine Records - http://www.guitar9.com
More details on selling indie music online: http://www.guitar9.com/danmc18.html

WHERE ELSE TO SELL YOUR MUSIC ONLINE?

Still looking for fame and fortune online? Read about the Websites that will market your music at this site:
THE VIRTUAL A&R LIST http://www.sean.co.uk/var

Some will sell your manufactured CDs, some will market music through paid-for download and some will add songs to a database to enable customers to create custom compilations.

The 'virtual a&r list' includes an index of 20 virtual record labels, together with details of their policies on new bands. At http://www.sean.co.uk/var, Bands can compare the opportunities across the Internet, without having to visit all the sites individually.

Here's some of those sites:

http://www.amp3.com http://www.amplified.com http://www.cdiy.co.uk http://www.cductive.com http://www.cerberus.co.uk http://www.extremeaudio.com http://www.goodnoise.com http://www.jbirdrecords.com http://www.lmn.com http://www.mjuice.com http://www.musicmaker.com http://www.netbeat.com http://www.netunes.com http://www.starvoice.com http://www.unsigned-music.com http://www.worldwide-radio.com http://www.y2k-music.co.uk

See also:
INDIE DISTRIBUTION ADVICE
from successful Country Music singer, Tonya Rae.
Tonya Rae is the author of the new critically acclaimed book "Insiders Secrets To Making Your Music A Success" and nominee for "New Female Vocalist of the Year" and "Album of the Year". She has had three #1 singles and eight top 40 singles nationwide.
http://www.guitarsite.com/newsletters/990531/11.shtml

SIMA
http://www.onelist.com/community/simamembers/. For independent musicians who want a voice in the evolution of the music industry in the digital age.

GarageBand.com, offers a $250,000 recording contract to bands voted the winners in their regularly scheduled contests. This site was co-founded by former Talking Head Jerry Harrison, and even has Sir George Martin on their payroll. Any band can upload their songs to the contest. Site visitors vote, and the winner gets a recording contract worth a lot of money. http://GarageBand.com

BEATS-E-ZINE
http://www.beatsezine.com
Have you just released a CD/EP? You can submit it here
http://www.beatsezine.com/submitmusic.html for review in:

• MusicDish (biweekly music industry magazine) genres accepted: rock, alternative, electronic, jazz, blues, pop, and country
• Black Hole (biweekly street music magazine) genres accepted: hip hop, R&B, reggae and dancehall
• LaRitmo (biweekly Latin music magazine) genres accepted: Latin rock, salsa, merengue, cumbia, Latin jazz and Latin house