Comedian Louis C.K. decided that he wanted to sell ‘Louis C.K. Live at the Beacon Theatre’ directly to his fans with “no DRM, no regional restrictions,” and “no crap,” and he says the experiment has been a runaway success. In just four days the stand-up show has already pulled in $200,000 in profit with over 110,000 copies sold, and C.K. says that “if anybody stole it, it wasn’t many of you.” C.K.‘s experiment is now an important story in the world of DRM and content distribution, especially considering that he directed, produced, and funded the project individually — he says he could have easily been guaranteed to make just as much money if he signed up with a big company that would have likely charged much more for the show. Instead, he put it up on the internet for $5, and hoped that people would do the right thing.
Louis C.K. sells his latest live show directly to fans, calls anti-DRM experiment a success
Louis C.K. sold his latest live show directly to fans, and he says that his anti-DRM experiment has been a success, selling over 110,000 copies in four days with profits of $200,000.
Louis C.K. sold his latest live show directly to fans, and he says that his anti-DRM experiment has been a success, selling over 110,000 copies in four days with profits of $200,000.
“I’ll continue to follow the model of keeping my price as far down as possible,” C.K. says, “not overmarketing to you, keeping as few people between you and me as possible in the transaction.” Of course, it’s too early to tell if the show’s strong sales will continue or if his model will be successfully replicated by others, and he even admits that he’ll sign with a company that pays him “fat coin” if things go south. As he tells reddit, “I hope I did this right. I have no idea. I have to go pick my kids up at school.”
