NIN & the iPhone

Trent Reznor lives on the cutting edge of technology, which makes perfect sense when you look at his creative process and the music of Nine Inch Nails. His latest foray - the NIN iPhone app - is one example of how willing he is to experiment with technology while making his music, and more importantly his brand, that much more accessible to fans.

The iPhone application has some great features. The community building via Google Earth is a great idea - showing forum posts, uploaded photos, and concert chatter in real time, whether the poster is at the concert or half-way around the world. Viewable on the iPhone app of course, but also within a web browser for those at home or using some other type of smart phone. But the best part - it's free.

Free for the taking.

Like the fan-created remixes of his music, submitted by anyone with an internet connection who visits the NIN website and registers to get started. Here, we'll give you the software and the MP3 files of original songs. Go ahead, show us what you've got!

Some artists embrace this kind of openness and sharing with their fan base (see also: Moby), while others struggle to reconcile copyrights and revenue with an internet-fueled market where users continually expect higher levels of access. Rather than strain against the tide of file sharing, remixes, and mash-ups, these creatives have figured out a way to harness that power to become more ingrained in fans' lives. And their brand cache gets a bump in the process.