Technological Changes in the Music Industry
But, nothing stays the same forever.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ And that’s certainly true of records (and the music industry).
As 45s gave way to LPs, jukeboxes died off, too.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ They are nowhere to be found in today’s world.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ No longer do cafes and restaurants have them.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Some even had the smaller, wall-mountedÃ?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ versions which would be in individual booths, making it even more convenient for customers to keep putting in coins to hear their favorite music.
With LPs and the increase in the number of FM radio stations playing them, the quality of music heard at home and in public places improved.�¯�¿�½ Of course, companies such as Sony contributed to improved sound quality with the fancy stereo systems they offered for sale to consumers.�¯�¿�½�¯�¿�½ And even though some systems boasted giant-sized speakers, it soon became clear that big was not necessarily better.
Sony’s walkman proved to be extremely popular when it came on the market.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ It offered listeners almost unbelievably high quality stereo sound in a tiny box which could easily be held in one hand.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ And with the versatility it offered consumers, they soon began making more and more tapes containing music of their own choosing and listening to them on a walkman.
Audiotapes, not surprisingly, began to overtake sales of records.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Clearly, the music industry was witnessing one of the most remarkable changes ever to take place in a market , thanks to rapidly developing technologies..Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Today, the making of vinyl records has effectively ceased to exist.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Music companies aren’t producingÃ?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ them and consumers certainly aren’t demanding vinyl records.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Instead CDs have surged on to the market, causing even audiotape to lose market share.
For a number of reasons, music producing companies now find themselves under siege.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Not only are consumers burning (i.e. making) their own CDs, they’re eagerly downloading music from internet sites.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ With the popularity of Apple’s iPod, consumers are making their own customized playlists, providing themselves with hours of listening enjoyment of music they choose to hear.
No wonder that musicians and music companies are trying to figure out how (1) to continue to make money, (2) to protect their copyrights, and (3) to adapt to the effects of technologically-induced changes in the marketplace.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ One critical area of the law they’re keen on following these days is the protection of intellectal property rights.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Most certainly lawmakers will be paying more attention to how to create laws in that area.
Not surprisingly, within the music industry itself, there are disagreements as to what needs to be done.�¯�¿�½ Some musicians welcome the ability to distribute their music directly to listeners via the internet.�¯�¿�½ They are happy�¯�¿�½ to circumvent the controlling behavior of giant music companies which they believe may not be treating them fairly, either in terms of releasing their work or paying them all the royalties due to them.�¯�¿�½
Consumers are gaining power in the marketplace through their use of the internet.Ã?¯Ã?¿Ã?½ Just how the music industry responds to this change in circumstances is anyone’s guess.
