While the possibility of pairing may seem very unlikely, the acquisition of Bandcamp creates a version of the internet that more closely matches Epic’s broad ambitions for the Metaverse with the company’s vision for Fortnite. Consistent with CEO Tim Sweeney’s intention.
Epic has acquired many companies in the last few years, thanks to Fortnite’s success. This is the social video app Houseparty, Guitar Hero, and rock band developer Harmonix.
Sweeney often issued official statements both in antitrust trials against Apple and on Twitter, expressing concern about Big Tech’s dominance and the extension of such controls to the Metaverse. A generational version of the Internet that combines social media, games and entertainment with technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality.
At Bandcamp, Epic seems to have found a like-minded platform. Also, given how expensive traditional media licensing agreements are, they are highly regarded by musicians for treating creators fairly in a way that helps plan Fortnite and Epic’s Metaverse.
“We’re excited to welcome the Bandcamp team to Epic Games,” said Steve Allison, chief of the Epic Game Store, in a statement. “Bandcamp has built a great community and business for up-and-coming artists to succeed, with one of the best revenue models and terms of music, thanks to the direct support of our fans. This is in all media. It’s closely in line with Epic’s approach of supporting creators and enabling them to connect directly with their fans. “
“At Epic, we found a partner who believes that the future of music and art itself depends as deeply as we do on building a fair and inclusive community that fans and artists have helped build. “. Bandcamp CEO Ethan Diamond said in a statement. “We are excited to work with the Epic team to accelerate the realization of our mission and pursue the common goal of empowering more creators in a fair and open way.”
This acquisition naturally raises some questions about what this means for Bandcamp’s future. It’s not yet clear whether Epic will make changes to Bandcamp’s revenue model (including Bandcamp Fridays) or what will happen to Bandcamp’s editorial work.
In another message on the company’s website and Twitter account, Diamond said Bandcamp will continue to be a standalone market, with Diamond taking the lead and there will be no immediate changes to Bandcamp’s business model. According to Diamond, Epic is currently primarily helping “from basic features such as album pages, mobile apps, march tools, payment systems, search and detection capabilities to new initiatives such as vinyl press and livestreaming services.” ..
“The products and services you depend on don’t go anywhere. We continue to build Bandcamp around artists-the first revenue model (artists earn an average of 82% of all sales). , You still have the same controls Bandcamp Fridays will continue on schedule and Daily will continue to emphasize the diverse and wonderful music on the site, “Diamond writes. “We share our vision of building the world’s most open and artist-friendly ecosystem. Together, we can further increase the opportunities for artists to get a fair reward for their work. . ”
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