Les Jones

A&E > This is What it Sounds Like When Record Company Executives Cry

From Time:

In an unprecedented deal, Prince granted British tabloid the Mail on Sunday exclusive rights to distribute his new album as a freebie. Cutting out record stores, online sellers, and even his U.K. label, Sony BMG, he decided to take Planet Earth straight to the people, and all it cost them was the paper's $3 cover price. "It's direct marketing," the pint-sized popster said when the deal was announced three weeks ago. "And I don't have to be in the speculation business of the record industry, which is going through a lot of tumultuous times right now."

As his fans rejoice — another middle finger to The Man! — the music industry is reeling. While Planet Earth is due to hit shelves in the U.S. on July 24, Sony BMG announced that with so many free copies floating around, it won't be releasing the album for sale in the U.K. at all. Music retailers boycotted the paper, until HMV reluctantly agreed to stock it, just this once. "We decided we could either get marginalized or we could get right in there," says spokesman Gennaro Castaldo. "With whatever reservations, our motivation was to give our customers the choice and access to the album." But what the industry is really worried about is what happens next.