Website That Benefits Both Musicians and Fans Bandcamp simplifies music sales by handling all the back-end functions that enable artists to sell online without being forced into pricing structures.

Ethan Diamond founded Bandcamp in 2008 after being frustrated by the clunky process of trying to purchase music from the website of one of his favorite artists. His goal? Launch a site that would benefit both musicians and their fans. Bandcamp does just that, handling all the back-end functions that enable artists to sell online without being forced into pricing structures, and making it just as easy for consumers to buy tunes without being subjected to ads.

On Bandcamp, artists set the price for their downloads, CDs, vinyl and other merchandise, such as T-shirts. They can also offer goods on a pay-what-you-wish model. On average, fans pay 50 percent more than the minimum price; every day, Diamond says, there are examples of die-hards paying as much as $100 for a track or $500 for an album.

"The most important piece of this is it's a direct connection between the fan and the artist," Diamond says. "It's not going through a label and figuring out how to divvy up the money. It's that direct relationship that causes fans to be more generous."