bandcamp
Well this is a strange one. Bandcamp just announced that it is “joining” Epic Games, meaning it was acquired by the game company. Terms of the deal haven’t been unveiled in a blog post by Bandcamp.
Epic Games is best known for being the company behind Rocket League and Fortnite, but also Unreal Engine, the very powerful graphics and 3D creation tool. Bandcamp is seen as one of the few music tech companies that actually puts artists first, giving an average of 82% of revenue from sales back to artists & labels. We will see if that continues with the new acquisition. For its part, Bandcamp has said repeatedly over the years that it is profitable, unlike many large streaming services that burn through cash like the Joker to build market share.
According to the Bandcamp blog post, the company will work beind the scenes “to expand internationally and push development forward across Bandcamp, from basics like our album pages, mobile apps, merch tools, payment system, and search and discovery features, to newer initiatives like our vinyl pressing and live streaming services.”
Bandcamp also assures people that they will operate “as a standalone marketplace and music community” and the current CEO and co-founder Ethan Diamond will continue to run the company. Bandcamp Fridays will continue as planned and the Daily will also continue, according to Bandcamp.
“Bandcamp’s mission is to help spread the healing power of music by building a community where artists thrive through the direct support of their fans,” said Ethan Diamond, CEO and co-founder of Bandcamp in a statement on the Epic Games website.
“In Epic, we’ve found a partner who believes as deeply as we do that the future of music, and art itself, depends on the creation of equitable and inclusive communities like the one our fans and artists have helped to build. We’re excited to work alongside the Epic team to accelerate the realization of our mission and pursue our shared goal of empowering more creators in a fair and open way.”
“We couldn’t be more excited to welcome the Bandcamp team to Epic Games,” said Steve Allison, Vice President and General Manager, Store at Epic Games. “Bandcamp has built an incredible community and business where up and coming artists can succeed thanks to the direct support of their fans, with one of the best revenue models and terms in music. This aligns closely with Epic’s approach to supporting creators across all media and enabling them to connect directly with their fans.”
This is a strange one on paper and Bandcamp may need to do some more convincing to get artists on board with this 100%. There isn’t a strong indication of how these companies will integrate in these statements, which only adds to the confusion.
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