Radiohead did something very cool with their new album. They allowed their fans to pay what ever they want for it! Yes, in fact if you don't want to pay anything for it you can also do that.

I paid what's equivalent of $10 for the new album, and I think that's a fair amount. It is maybe a bit to much, since a lot more of it will go directly to the artist since there is no music company to take a big chunk of the money for themselves.

I see a lot of articles on the web discussing what does this all mean. Is this a new way for artists to tell music companies to buzz off, are huge music companies still needed since music seems to be moving towards purely digital format any ways.

If everyone stops buying CD's there is no need for mass distribution. There is however still the question of making the music known, advertisement, placement etc...

It will be interesting to see what will happen in the future, DRM is a complete failure so there must be a better way to sell music online. Amazon MP3 store is a good start (When can I buy music in Canada, without faking my address?), and hopefully more major record labels will allow DRM free music. I think at this time, if they don't they are doomed.