Sorry, but that’s irrelevant.

The reason why Vevo could fail is very simple: new content is the lifeblood of the online media business.

Hulu can stream new episodes of most current TV shows immediately after they air on linear TV, when they are most valuable by far. For example, if a new episode of Lost airs every Thursday for 4 months and is avail on Hulu the same day, regular Hulu users will come back every week to watch that same show.

A library of music videos, however massive, will not consistently attract returning visitors. Unless it is very clever about adopting Pandora-like targeting and/or offers extremely deep libraries for individual artists to serve passionate fans, visitors to Vevo may often watch (or listen to) 3 or 4 videos from the same artist, but will then have trouble finding something else they want to watch, never to return again.

Even if there is a steady flow of new content from top pop artists (Beyonce, Britney Spears, etc), these artists don’t release new albums every week to encourage people to return to Vevo!

Another very important factor is that the off-line marketing and PR blitz for new albums for the most part ends when the new album is released. For TV hits, it continues throughout the season – millions of people continue to consume the “product” on an ongoing basis, driving what you might call word-of-mouth retention marketing, and millions of people continue to see the on-air promo spots that support the program.

Hulu has enough of these hits to keep people coming back over and over again.

Having worked in the industry for last 10 years across the globe, I would like to highlight 3 points:

1) New Model: are you FREAKING kidding me? I have heard this phrase from every damn music exec in from LA-NY-LDN-HK for any new service being launched.
For heaven’s sake get your head out of your ivory asses and look up– not a single music initiative by a label has worked and most if not all of them have been closed systems–that shit doesnt work. I dont know how some of you lot got Harvard degrees.

2) Scarcity: Again this hasnt work since internet days and will not work either. The cat is out of the bag and acknowledge that than sitting in a 1980′s fantasy world. Can one really defend the success of iTunes to SCARCITY of content? It was combination of easy access (scarcity less) and cheaper (ie not buying a freaking full album for 1 song) that has build a genuine legal music biz. I know many in the industry may not like Apple, but they are the only White Knight here–take something from them and make it better.

3) Technology: I know you guys are no tech-geeks and no one expects that. But any faulty CD backlash would be borne upon by the label, same goes on any other medium, including digital. Yes, there can be faults but not like the ones seen by me and the author–this was amateur work. Either pay for some tech rockstars and just do simple licensing deals and let others take the technology fault. YOU HAVE NO EXCUSES FOR SUCH MISTAKES.

Lastly, given last weeks acquisitions, it is sad to hear that NOT a single label bought over guys like iMeem or LALA (who are the real bread winners for your content) but rather a desperate sale to non-music-industry-insiders such MS and Apple.

I am sorry Nick in advance for such a harsh response, but I sincerely hope for our industry’s future we take a hard and realistic look. I would rather be fueled on 1980′s aura but am afraid, we are well past those days now.

I actually think that VEVO as an experience can, will and frankly must succeed – never have the labels been so motivated to try something different, their is a user experience that has proven to be successful, and scarcity can do wonders for driving traffic.

So give it a minute, and let’s see what happens in 3-6 months…

BTW, Chris Brown is a Sony artist, not WMG.