Evan Lowenstein's Stageit, a Live Music Site

A dozen years ago, Evan Lowenstein had a brief flirtation with fame when he and his twin brother landed the song Crazy for This Girl on the teen-angst TV drama Dawson’s Creek. (It peaked at No. 15 on Billboard’s Hot 100.) Today, Lowenstein’s second act features him running a Web service called Stageit. The site blends concerts—a part of the music business that’s still actually making money—with something akin to a pay-per-view version of Skype. An artist fires up a webcam and plays live for 30 minutes in an intimate setting, such as his own kitchen. The talent controls the price—usually about $5—and caps how many people can watch. “It’s like a virtual campfire,” Lowenstein says.

While most shows are just a singer with an acoustic guitar in front of a laptop, Lowenstein has signed up a few bigger names, including Jackson Browne, Indigo Girls, and Jason Mraz. Stageit handles billing, ensures that there’s enough bandwidth, and includes a chat feature so fans can ask questions or request songs. There’s a “tip jar” so listeners can give more money if they want, and Stageit takes 40 percent of sales (yes, including the tips, which Lowenstein says account for nearly half of Stageit’s revenue). While many people have come to expect music to be free, Lowenstein says, they will pay to see live performances. “You can’t pirate intimacy,” he says, “and you can’t pirate an experience.”