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DVDs are forming a crucial part of many high-profile acts' campaigns for the festive season. By Adam Woods
It is possibly overstating the case to suggest that any artist who has had any degree of albums chart success in 2003 is represented in the slate of Christmas DVD releases. Certainly, top line acts such as Justin Timberlake, Robbie Williams, Coldplay, Avril Lavigne, REM and the Red Hot Chili Peppers are lined up on the schedules during the next six weeks. But, at the same time, equally hot names such as Busted, Daniel Bedingfield, White Stripes and Sean Paul are conspicuous by their absence and, in the light of rising sales for the format, it is hard not to conclude that any major album campaign which does not include a DVD release is missing a trick.
All the same, the Christmas music DVD schedule has the look of a secret weapon about it. The festive market likes its artists tried and tested, and just about every self-respecting major artist of the past decade is adding to their visual legacy this Christmas. And whereas in the past, DVDs have come packed with every available promo from a given artist's career, there are signs that record companies are beginning to play the long game now. The trend for live DVDs rolled in with interim collections of promos is a notable one, as the music industry machine begins to come to grips with its new role as an exploiter of music, not just on record, but also on film.
BMG
With three of the year's five biggest albums to its name as it enters the fourth quarter - Justin Timberlake's Justified, Christina Aguilera's Stripped and Avril Lavigne's Let Go - BMG is perfectly placed to clean up in the music DVD market, and its schedule seeks to make appropriate mileage out of the company's star assets.
Justin Timberlake
Justified: The Videos (released today)
He is just four singles into his solo career, but it's never too soon to anthologise, so here are the videos for Like I Love You, Cry Me A River, Rock Your Body and Senorita, along with live performances including Justin's debut solo turn at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards and his Kylie-bothering performance...