Illegal Downloading Versus the Recording Industry
Illegal Downloading Versus the Recording Industry
Mathieu Charlebois
March 26, 2011
MUSI 1002B
Alyssa Woods
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We live in a constantly changing world where we are finding ourselves having to adapt to new ways, trends, and products constantly. Within the past century, technology has been the major catalyst for changed and has made its mark in all industries. The music industry was birthed from the advances in technology and is constantly evolving and embracing changes in all aspects from how new talent is scouted to the way in which music is recorded. One major change that has happened is the way in which music is distributed. The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyze some of the effects in which the innovation of the internet, file sharing sites, and illegal downloading has had on the music industry. The increased use of piracy has caused innovation within the music industry and given birth to new ideas and concepts - despite record labels’ constant hammering down on illegal downloading.
Innovation creates many opportunities for potential entrepreneurs and companies to make more profit, as innovation always leads to the need for more innovation. While responding to innovation can be a tricky task, there is a long history of research and new ideas that industries have had to develop in an effort to overcome a threatening new innovation. More specifically, the music industry has had a long line of major changes in the development and reception of music, especially more recently with the heightened use of technology. Perhaps the starting of the popularity of downloading music from the internet occurred when the Motion Picture Expert Group developed standards for the signal compression of audio and video signals. This standard was then used in software made available to the general public, therefore marketing it without any effort. The mp3 format is the standard
Mathieu Charlebois
March 26, 2011
MUSI 1002B
Alyssa Woods
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We live in a constantly changing world where we are finding ourselves having to adapt to new ways, trends, and products constantly. Within the past century, technology has been the major catalyst for changed and has made its mark in all industries. The music industry was birthed from the advances in technology and is constantly evolving and embracing changes in all aspects from how new talent is scouted to the way in which music is recorded. One major change that has happened is the way in which music is distributed. The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyze some of the effects in which the innovation of the internet, file sharing sites, and illegal downloading has had on the music industry. The increased use of piracy has caused innovation within the music industry and given birth to new ideas and concepts - despite record labels’ constant hammering down on illegal downloading.
Innovation creates many opportunities for potential entrepreneurs and companies to make more profit, as innovation always leads to the need for more innovation. While responding to innovation can be a tricky task, there is a long history of research and new ideas that industries have had to develop in an effort to overcome a threatening new innovation. More specifically, the music industry has had a long line of major changes in the development and reception of music, especially more recently with the heightened use of technology. Perhaps the starting of the popularity of downloading music from the internet occurred when the Motion Picture Expert Group developed standards for the signal compression of audio and video signals. This standard was then used in software made available to the general public, therefore marketing it without any effort. The mp3 format is the standard
Bibliography: Easley, Robert F.: 2005, ‘Ethical Issues in the Music Industry Response to Innovation and Piracy’, Journal of Business Ethics, 62: 163-168. Economist: October 30, 2004, ‘Music’s Brighter Future,’ Economist. Halliday, Jeff: January 6, 2012, ‘Digital Downloads Overtake Physical Sales for the First Time in the US’, The Guardian, Accessed: March 25, 2012, http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/jan/06/downloads-physical-sales-us. Jardin, X.: November 15, 2004, ‘Music Is Not a Loaf of Bread’, Wired News, Accessed: March 14, 2012, http://www.wired.com/news/print/0,1294,65688,00.html. NME: July 24, 2008, ‘Illegal Downloaders to be Threatened by UK ISPs’, NME, Accessed March 25, 2012, http://www.nme.com/news/various-artists/38405 NME: July 29, 2008, ‘Duffy: Illegal Downloading Is a Good Thing’, NME, Accessed March 25, 2012, http://www.nme.com/news/duffy/38499 Oberholzer, F. and K. Strumpf: 2004, ‘The Effect of File Sharing on Record Sales An Empirical Analysis’, Working Paper http://www.unc.edu/~cigar/papers/FileSharing_March2004.pdf. Schwartz, J.: April 5, 2004, ‘A Heretical View of File Sharing’, The New York Times. Tudor, Vieru: January 16, 2009, ’95 Percent of Online Music Downloads Are Illegal’, Softpedia, Accessed: March 25, 2012, http://news.softpedia.com/news/95-Percent-of-Online-Music-Downloads-Are-Illegal-102185.shtml