'In Rainbows' pay-what-you-like success revealed

• 15th Oct 2008

The success of Radiohead's 'In Rainbows' has been officially revealed today.
Warner Chappell, the publishing company behind the release, have said the album has made a “material difference” to the company's UK digital income.

A year after the album was released on a 'pay what you like' basis, it has been revealed that 'In Rainbows' had made more money in the three months before it was available physically than 'Hail to the Theif' did in total.

It has not been confirmed that the band will try a similar tact with the next album, however. The release created so much publicity that perhaps its success could not be recreated, due to a lack of novelty. The unique strategy also left the band often being questioned about its reasoning, rather than their music.

It cannot be denied, however, that the release was a success and may lead to a change in the way songs are sold, released and licsensed in the future.

In total, there have been three million purchases of 'In Rainbows', including physical CDs, box-sets, and all downloads