From shopping for clothes, to keeping in touch with relatives and friends, from checking the weather forecast to paying the telephone bill - the internet has affected the way we live our lives in almost every area. The impact it has had on how we listen to and consume music has been huge, and it seems impossible now to imagine life without it. The music industry has often been a step behind in exploiting the uses of the internet.
Online file sharing has been the biggest concern for the music industry, millions and millions of songs being shared online every year. Napster was the first application to allow file sharing in 1999 and while it was shut down other websites and programs have been developed allowing people to continue file sharing. Finding an appropriate model for selling music online has been more important in fighting illegal file sharing than turning millions of people, many of whom are teenagers, into criminals.
Online stores like Amazon and iTunes give people a massive selection of songs to purchase instantly at reasonable prices. While some stores used digital rights management in the early days to prevent file sharing, they also stopped legitimate uses which seemed to punish people for paying for music. The decision of these stores to end DRM with support from the music industry can be seen as a sign that the industry respects its customers.
Another way the internet has changed the music industry is the way it promotes its artists. While websites and email newsletters are one way of promoting artists, sites such as Facebook and Twitter allow fans of artists to feel closer to their favourite acts. It also gives people a way of sharing new music that they find. YouTube is another website that the music industry could capitalize on, but rather than see it as a potential marketing tool, able to broadcast music videos to users anywhere, many have seen it as a threat to potential revenue.
Rather than trying to ignore or lock down the internet and see it as a threat to business, the music industry has to recognise the power of the internet and see that the way music is consumed has irreversibly changed. By focusing on how best to capitalize on these changes the industry can look forward to benefitting from the huge interest in music from established and developing markets.
Online file sharing has been the biggest concern for the music industry, millions and millions of songs being shared online every year. Napster was the first application to allow file sharing in 1999 and while it was shut down other websites and programs have been developed allowing people to continue file sharing. Finding an appropriate model for selling music online has been more important in fighting illegal file sharing than turning millions of people, many of whom are teenagers, into criminals.
Online stores like Amazon and iTunes give people a massive selection of songs to purchase instantly at reasonable prices. While some stores used digital rights management in the early days to prevent file sharing, they also stopped legitimate uses which seemed to punish people for paying for music. The decision of these stores to end DRM with support from the music industry can be seen as a sign that the industry respects its customers.
Another way the internet has changed the music industry is the way it promotes its artists. While websites and email newsletters are one way of promoting artists, sites such as Facebook and Twitter allow fans of artists to feel closer to their favourite acts. It also gives people a way of sharing new music that they find. YouTube is another website that the music industry could capitalize on, but rather than see it as a potential marketing tool, able to broadcast music videos to users anywhere, many have seen it as a threat to potential revenue.
Rather than trying to ignore or lock down the internet and see it as a threat to business, the music industry has to recognise the power of the internet and see that the way music is consumed has irreversibly changed. By focusing on how best to capitalize on these changes the industry can look forward to benefitting from the huge interest in music from established and developing markets.
