Can Music Shops be saved?
In the past 13 years we have witnessed dynamic changes in all facets of the music industry due to the Internet and various advances in technology. The birth of Napster, iTunes, the shift from CD’s to mp3’s, and the increased volume of online shopping have all personified the music industry’s monumental shift from ‘old’ to ‘new.’ However, from production to retail, the question that still remains to be seen is whether these drastic changes have affected the music industry for better or for worse. The consumer might agree that the advances in music have been for the better, but with record labels scrabbling for new means of generating revenue, its likely labels feel like these “advances” have been for the worse. Regardless of the varying interpretations of the positive or negative effects of the changes to the music industry, I think both consumers and labels would agree that the 2 biggest shifts in the last 13 years were a result of Napster and iTunes. During the Napster Era, which occurred in the late 1990’s - early 2,000’s, there was an explosion in online music that was downloaded for free and shared amongst users at a high frequency. Then, from the early 2,000’s up until now, Apple’s iTune era took over, spurring many consumers to begin purchasing music online as either fragmented or whole bodies of work.
However, after the departure of Napster, a slew of other free music sites began popping up, picking up where the fallen Napster had left off and ultimately proving to music labels that piracy was more resilient than they had expected. It was no surprise that being able to obtain free music of ‘your favorite artist’ seemed wonderful from the perspective of the music consumer. But from the point of view of the major labels and the RIAA, free music meant the demise of their industry, as their revenues, previously in the upper hundreds of millions of dollars, was on the decline at an exceedingly rapid rate. They had to act - and act fast. With that said, the major record labels, the RIAA, and even some artists went on a blitzkrieg campaign to shut down users downloading free music, in addition to the sites that enabled the illegal downloading activities. In the years to follow, numerous litigation battles ensued and the labels and the RIAA were partially successful in shutting down music piracy. It would seem that the inception of Apple’s iTunes was the record labels’ answer, or, at the very least, remedy to online music piracy. Giving the consumer the option to buy various songs or whole albums of an artist seemed to stop the financial ‘bleeding’ caused by the piracy of music. Apple’s virtual ‘tourniquet’ appeared to help the music business get back on track - or at least it appeared that way? As we know, with all major battles, whether won or lost, there is collateral damage.
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