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THE FUTURE OF THE MUSIC BUSINESS / Re: It's only fair...
« on: July 20, 2011, 10:32:51 pm »
There is so much out there and so little time, that not everyone can pay attention to everything they might enjoy. Consequently, when someone downloads something it doesn't necessarily mean that they would have purchased it. It just means that they wanted to check it out. I would be willing to bet that 30% or more of downloaded music files stay either un-listened to or listened to once. I am basing that figure on anecdotes, not a scientific study of any kind. (major disclaimer: so I'm clear, I don't download any music without paying for it, in case that wasn't obvious.)
The issue arises when too many people assume it's cool, and begin to not pay for things they absolutely would have shelled out for in a different time/climate. I think it's important for a greater proportion of people to have more of an understanding of cause and effect so they can make informed decisions at least.
One thing we need to keep in mind is the weird, transitional point in history that we're at. Selling recorded music is an extremely new and short-lived phenomenon. We take it for granted but it couldn't possibly have lasted forever. The balance of who gets paid has shifted to the aggregator of creativity, the notifier, rather than the artist or the label. Companies that promise the artist a new way of promoting themselves, that bank on the idea that one person can "make it" are the ones who still have the opportunity to make a good living off the industry, while holding up a success story or two about a rare occurrence that is used as evidence of the possible. That isn't a new tactic though.
New technologies disrupt old ones. I'm not saying it's awesome, but it just is. We're affected by large changes and can't fully appreciate what they mean because we're in the middle of it. This is no consolation to the struggling artist (hello, i'm right here) but it's something to wrangle with and make the most of if possible.
Maybe we're moving back into an age of artists being supported not by selling their wares but by receiving stipends from a patron. Maybe there is some sort of balancing act of the ease with which music can be made because of technology and the ease with which it can be consumed because of technology. I digress. This is an endless conversation because we can't see the end of it yet. That is a good thing.
The issue arises when too many people assume it's cool, and begin to not pay for things they absolutely would have shelled out for in a different time/climate. I think it's important for a greater proportion of people to have more of an understanding of cause and effect so they can make informed decisions at least.
One thing we need to keep in mind is the weird, transitional point in history that we're at. Selling recorded music is an extremely new and short-lived phenomenon. We take it for granted but it couldn't possibly have lasted forever. The balance of who gets paid has shifted to the aggregator of creativity, the notifier, rather than the artist or the label. Companies that promise the artist a new way of promoting themselves, that bank on the idea that one person can "make it" are the ones who still have the opportunity to make a good living off the industry, while holding up a success story or two about a rare occurrence that is used as evidence of the possible. That isn't a new tactic though.
New technologies disrupt old ones. I'm not saying it's awesome, but it just is. We're affected by large changes and can't fully appreciate what they mean because we're in the middle of it. This is no consolation to the struggling artist (hello, i'm right here) but it's something to wrangle with and make the most of if possible.
Maybe we're moving back into an age of artists being supported not by selling their wares but by receiving stipends from a patron. Maybe there is some sort of balancing act of the ease with which music can be made because of technology and the ease with which it can be consumed because of technology. I digress. This is an endless conversation because we can't see the end of it yet. That is a good thing.