The influential internet.

I think everyone would agree that in the last decade or so, the internet has vastly changed the ways people consume. One can have a Google search yield literally thousands of results for almost anything one types in. Online superstores, like Amazon, have made easy work of finding and buying obscure or foreign merchandise. With so much so easily available now, people's concepts of music consumption have changed significantly.

Through my research, it occurred to me that new methods of music production and distribution are directly related to the effects the internet has had on modern culture and consumer ideals. So far, it seems that consumers and artists are benefitting the most from these methods while the record companies and music stores are struggling to find their place. As we all know, over the last few years, the internet has allowed for the widespread practice of illegal music downloading. Why should people pay for an overpriced CD when they can download it for free? Obviously, the industry and the artists cannot make music free. Soon, there would be no more new material and no professional musicians in the world. That being said, you can imagine the shock felt by record companies when both Prince and Radiohead released their latest albums, essentially, for nothing.

TIME Magazine published articles about both album releases. Each of the articles, "Why Prince's Free CD Ploy Worked" and "Radiohead Says: Pay What You Want", cited recording company executives who sounded stunned and depressed by the unprecedented freebies. A European executive talking about Radiohead said: "If the best band in the world doesn't want a part of us, I'm not sure what's left for this business." As it stands, he may be right. After their respective album releases, both Prince and Radiohead sold out every one of their concerts. Their decision to give away free music has certainly endeared them even more to their fans. Could it be that artists are finally breaking free from the greedy, oppressive recording companies? When asked about their decision to take such a risk, Radiohead's Thom Yorke replied: "I like the people at our record company, but the time is at hand when you have to ask why anyone needs one. And, yes, it probably would give us some perverse pleasure to say 'F___ you' to this decaying business model." Even so, artists cannot and will not continue giving their music away for nothing. Doing so would quickly clear the world of professional musicians.

I believe these freebies came about as a result of how the internet has changed artists' and consumers' ideas about the music business. Prince, Radiohead and other top selling, established bands may be able to afford the occasional freebie, but the vast majority of artists cannot. It will be a while yet before record companies and music dealerships disappear; in fact a while might mean never. Whatever becomes of the industry, it is obvious that we are at the beginning of a huge shift in how music will be consumed.

Up until now.

For as long as it has been possible to record music, there have been record companies. Throughout most of the last century, when music was recorded, it was done so by such a company. The artists would sign, often exclusive, recording contracts and their recordings would be mastered, produced and sold by the company. As is now widely known, these were not always the best deals for the artists. The companies would take huge percentages of the money earned from record sales, not to mention the ownership rights they often obtained over the material recorded. Nonetheless, before the days of internet and music downloading, this was the most likely way for a performing artist to be successful.

Today, not much has changed between record companies and their signed artists. The contracts almost completely favor the companies. If one is a pop star whose records are constantly going multi-platinum, this is not so much an issue. The money coming in is so great that it hardly matters what percentage the record company takes. Unfortunately, for less mainstream artists, it is nearly impossible to see any returns for one's work if signed with a record label. With the development of the internet and the potential for music downloading, some artists have discovered new potential for self-managing, production and selling their material.

On the other hand, there is of course the potential for the artist to lose even more money, as music is so freely available for illegal downloading. However, the exact magnitude of the loss experienced by the industry seems to be in dispute. Some claiming that the record companies and artists are losing so much to illegal downloading as to nearly put them out of business, where others argue that illegal downloading has had no real effect on the number of record sales. Whichever the case, the record companies current strategy seems to involve going after music pirates as harshly as possible, filing huge lawsuits whenever they can prove an instance of illegal downloading.

Recurrent posts will explore the changing nature of the music industry; specifically how production and distribution mediums are changing. I will analyze the issue both from the perspectives of the artists and the industry. Hopefully, through my research I will gain some interesting insight on the latest trends emerging in the music business.

This is my new blog!