OF HUMAN BAT-BONDAGE

Good morning, Internets.

Would you like to see Yvonne Craig dressed as Batgirl and tied in a Siamese Human Knot with Batman and Robin?

Cos I just happen to have that right here.

Tangled up in blue,

This is dF

YOUTUBE DOESN’T KILL MUSIC, RECORD COMPANIES KILL MUSIC

Many of you have seen that YouTube video of the choreographed wedding entrance to Chris Brown’s “Forever”.

I didn’t link to it because (1) I figured you’d already seen it, (2) I’m a curmudgeon when it comes to weddings (unless they’re gay – go figure), and (3) I knew I wouldn’t be able to post it without a tasteless Rihanna reference.

I was, however, waiting to see a story where Chris Brown’s record label, Sony Music, sued it off the YouTubes on general principle and demanded the couple pay royalties for using the song in a wedding ceremony (because legally, they can do that).

But they didn’t.

Instead, once the video popped up on their radar using YouTube’s automated detection tools (the same ones that helped Warner Music ban its own videos from its own official web site), Sony simply opted to add a link to the video page so people could buy the song off iTunes.

Result:

The click-through rate (CTR) on the "JK Wedding Entrance" video is 2x the average of other Click-to-Buy overlays on the site. And this newfound interest in downloading "Forever" goes beyond the viral video itself: "JK Wedding Entrance" also appears to have influenced the official "Forever" music video, which saw its Click-to-Buy CTR increase by 2.5x in the last week.

So, what does all of this mean? Despite compelling data and studies around consumer purchasing habits, many still question the promotional and bottom-line business value sites like YouTube provide artists. But in the last week, over a year after its release, Chris Brown's "Forever" has again rocketed up the charts, reaching as high as #4 on the iTunes singles chart and #3 on Amazon's best selling MP3 list. We've seen similar successes in the past with partners like Monty Python.

Why aren’t other record labels doing this?

Oh, YOU know ...

BONUS TRACK: Since playing a Chris Brown song at a wedding is bound to raise some eyebrows, the couple in question is using the attention from the YouTube video to solicit donations to the Sheila Wellstone Institute, an advocacy group aimed at stopping domestic violence.

So, you know, that’s cool.

Make me a business model,

This is dF

PIMP MY BAT-RIDE

In case the earlier Batgirl footage wasn’t enough to get yr Monday motor running, I also have Batgirl on a motorcycle.



Notice the frilly trimmings there. That’s cos Classy Batgirl is classy.

Still, there have been worse ideas for Bat-transport.



Either that’s a tiny elephant, or Adam West is larger than you thought.

Kickstart my heart,

This is dF