First of all I would like to apologise to anyone that has been affected by the closure of Z Audio distribution.
Over the last few years, as many people are aware, Vinyl sales have dramatically decreased.
The distribution was 7 staff strong at its height and was forced to close the department, as the sales were just not there to continue with the HUGE overheads involved in storage and distribution on vinyl records.
I tried to close the distribution to the absolute best of my ability, but the reality is, it has been near enough impossible to make sure everyone that had business with Z Audio Distribution, was left in good communication and accounted to in full.
To do this, there needs to be funds to administrate the staff and time spent to do so, but this was the reason we had to close in the first place.
I was forced to let go of all staff and now the company is just run by myself.
I would have of loved to have made sure everyone left happy, but I am now only one man and can only do so much.
Just for everyone’s information, I paid a hell of a lot of money out of my own pocket trying to keep it alive, but it was a battle I was always going to loose through the awful economic situation the UK and rest of the world is in.
We did manage to account and pay a majority of labels/artists and suppliers, but the sheer volume of doing this, again, was near enough impossible.
I feel I am only now getting back on my feet and have started to account to labels and artists that have not been looked after in the fall out.
Anyway, enough sob stories.
I would like to account and pay, if applicable, all the labels/artists that have been affected in all of this.
Please can you email me on
zac@zaudio.co.uk and I will do my very best to get things sorted.
Please note that it may take a while to clear the back log, but I will create a folder with everyone’s issues and try and answer everyone as soon as humanly possible.
In response to Pkays post.
He has stated his side of the story, so I will now state mine.
Z Audio put out a compilation through EMI that contained the track by Culprate "Airline".
I originally contacted the label manager at Dubsaw records and asked him is he had any potential tracks for this compilation.
I was sent the Culprate track and we verbally agreed that this would be used for this compilation.
I was under the impression Dubsaw and Culprate were on good terms and stupidly, put off getting a contract signed for usage of this track. To my defence though, even if I would have got a signature from Dubsaw, they would have not legally had the rights to sign and would have been in exactly the same situation of breach.
Then on the 14th of June, a day after the release date, I was contacted by Gradient Audio saying that I was illegally selling the Culprate track and asked for me to stop the distribution of this product.
I said to Jason that it was impossible to stop the distribution as the physical copies had already been shipped.
After a long conversation to the States to explain myself and try to amend the damage, I offered Jason double the amount of what I agreed with Dubsaw.
Jason empathised with me and put the blame on Dubsaw.
So I sent payment and asked Jason to sign a contract for the usage.
He refused and got me to sign his own contract for this.
At this point, I thought me and Gradient were on good terms and felt like everything was sorted.
I was in such a panic to sort this out, I never saw that Gradient’s contract never actually gave Z Audio, Digital distribution rights for this track, even though he knew that both formats were in circulation.
After this initial communication happened (about 2 weeks or so), Gradient kicked up a massive fuss direct to EMI and was trying to get EMI to stop selling the product, even though me and him had talked and were on, what I thought good terms.
As soon as I heard this from my contact from EMI this was all going on, I called Jason to find out what on earth was going on.
I was told that the contract I signed, only gave Z Audio physical distribution rights and that I needed to pay a further fee to cover this right.
Looking back, I have no doubt that Gradient planned this all and knew that they would come back and milk me for the Digital rights after he sneakily got me to sign his contract that did not allow us to digitally distribute.
If he hadn't had planned to really dig his nails in, why did he not get me to sign the contract and agree on the distribution of both physical and digital at the point of contact?
He knew that both were in circulation.
Anyway, I then rang Jason and tried to sort it out AGAIN and he said he wanted further funds to grant rights for digital distribution, which I immediately paid.
Then, to take it even further, Gradient contacted me again and said we have a further breach because the product had been delivered to Last FM. (Again about 2 weeks later from second communication)
EMI provided Last FM with the product and I guess it is a slight grey area if Last FM are actually a regular DSP or in fact a radio station.
He said that he did not grant the rights for any radio play ect.
I do actually empathise with Jason’s gripe and this time, and did appreciate he contacted me, instead of going straight to EMI.
He wanted a further advance that would have been 100000 times over the funds coming in for such usage, but I told him he was frankly taking the piss and as a offer of compensation for this grey area, I was prepared to pass on 100% of the Last FM royalties and any other DSP's that might be deemed a regular digital retailer.
I never got a reply and knew it was only a matter of time until something like this would come about.
Make of it what you will, but feel I have conducted myself in the best manner possible and think Jason set out from the very start to make this situation as hard as it possibly can for Z Audio…………..
Zac @ Z Audio
zac@zaudio.co.uk
