Published
Thu, Jan 14, 2021, 20:02
- 10,000 artists and labels on the platform have been invited to use the crowdfunded manufacturing service, which was first introduced in 2019.
Bandcamp has expanded its vinyl pressing service to make it available to the platform's wider community.
Initially rolled out as a pilot program for a select group of artists and labels back in 2019, the crowdfunded initiative allows sellers to raise money from customers via preorders to cover the vinyl manufacturing process without any upfront costs. 10,000 more Bandcamp sellers have now been invited to participate in the program, with further extensions to continue throughout 2021.
The process involves sellers submitting their designs and establishing a campaign goal to cover a minimum 250 record run, which then has 30 days to achieve its set target via customer pledges. If a campaign is successful, Bandcamp then handles the pressing, printing and shipping directly to customers.
Since 2019, the vinyl pressing service has seen the manufacture and shipping of 13,000 records to 65 countries. More broadly, more than two million vinyl records were sold through Bandcamp in 2020, a twofold increase on the prior year.
The service comes in addition to other community-focused initiatives from Bandcamp including ticketed livestreaming and Bandcamp Fridays. Bandcamp Fridays, which see the site waiving its fees on the first Friday of the month, were recently extended until May at the earliest.
Read our feature, Anti-Algorithmic Music: How Bandcamp Is Helping Artists Beat The Odds.