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Asia reaps the bonus of labels' sales drive

A similar phenomenon has been observed in Hong Kong in recent years with international acts releasing extra tracks for Asian markets. Most such releases are tied in with the artists' Asian tours.

British rock band Oasis' exclusive 2009 Asian tour edition of Dig Out Your Soul, for example, includes two bonus tracks: I Believe in All and an alternate version of The Turning. The special edition was first released in Japan, followed by other Asian cities including Hong Kong where the band performed earlier this year.

'It definitely boosts sales,' says Raymond Leung Wai-man, senior product manager of Sony BMG which released the expanded album last month. 'Consumers are more budget conscious [these days]. But with the additional cuts, together with the hype of their concert, there's a greater incentive for music fans to buy the special edition.'

He says exclusive Asian bonus tracks are also released when an international artist collaborates with an Asian singer. A few years back, a remix of Beyonc?'s Crazy in Love featuring Taiwanese singer Vanness Wu Jian-hao was included in her exclusive Asian edition album Dangerously in Love, released by Sony Music. Last year, Hong Kong singer Hins Cheung King-hin was featured in the Asian bonus remix of Hate That I Love You, a duet in Rihanna's Reloaded album released by Universal Music.

Leung says such collaborations customised for the Asian market aims to expand the fan base of both singers. 'Sometimes people who listen to Chinese-language songs don't listen to western songs and vice versa. With these collaborations, we hope to attract the two groups of music fans,' he says.

For local releases, record companies are also resorting to value-added bonuses to lure back music fans. For example, a deluxe edition of Eason Chan Yik-shun's H3M (below), containing an extra DVD with live recordings and three music videos, was made available a month after the standard edition was released.

Duncan Wong, the head of Universal Music, says the extra content, if in good quality and in line with a proper promotion campaign, can boost sales, from an average of 5,000 to 10,000 copies more than the standard edition.

'With slightly more money, consumers are looking for value-added products,' Wong says. 'It was just like in the vinyl era when record companies released vinyls in different colours with bonus tracks to entice consumers. It's a similar marketing strategy.'

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