THE FUTURE OF ONLINE MUSIC
The Music Industry still doesn't really know what The Internet is all about. What they do know, is that their copyrighted material is being distributed across the Internet, and there is little the industry can do to stop it... without paying huge attorney's fees. Despite their victories in court over Napster -- virtually shutting the service down -- and their "settlement" with MP3.com -- that took total control over that once great site -- The Music Industry is still very frightened by the Internet. They still should be.
After Pornography, MP3 Files are the most sought after Internet Commodity. Anybody with a shareware "Ripper" can take any CD and convert every song on it to an MP3 file. They can then distribute it with almost complete anonymity, without any fear of reprisal through a multitude of Peer to Peer methods and services. There is nothing the Music Industry can do to stop it.
First off, the technology exists in a truly global marketplace. In theory, an individual could convert every song ever released on CD to .mp3, put those files on a server in an unfriendly country, like say China, and anyone anywhere can go and download that music. The Music Industry is forever screwed.
The Entertainment Industry on a whole has been fighting Chineese operations that produce billions of dollars worth of bootlegged entertainment products. Every entertainment product imaginable, from CD's to Video Games, are mass counterfited in China and distributed all over the world. And it is almost impossible for the Music Industry to file suit against an unfriendly country, as there is no existing court in the world to adjudicate such a suit.
Much the same problem exists for the industry with the Internet. Here is a technology that's been around for a couple of years, that allows anyone on the planet with access to download just about any song ever recorded. Who do you go after? What court has jurisdiction? And what about individuals in unfriendly countries, virtually immune from US Copyright Laws? Do you file suit against US Citizens, when some guy on the other side of the world is doing the same thing and getting away with it?
It is cost prohibitive for the Music Industry to sue a thousand people, let alone the millions who have "unauthorized" .mp3 files on their hard drives. Making an example of an individual, or a small group of individuals, will only make the problem worse. Every "martyr" the industry creates, 100 newbies will arise to "fight the system". Once Napster fell, the "pirates" switched over to one of dozens of P2P services, many of which the Industry doesn't even know exist... yet. People have found a way to get free music from the Internet, and no matter what the Industry does, it is never going to stop.
The Internet Opportunity
Despite the bleak picture painted here, The MP3 Revolution, and the Internet, presents the most unique opportunity for the Music Industry since the invention of the Phonograph. The Internet has provided unlimited potential in the development and marketing of new artists, and helped to boost sales of back catalogue product. And it never hurts to let consumers "try it before they buy it".
What a better way to generate enthusiasm for an up and coming new act, if the consumers can download a "Single" and hear the music in near-perfect quality. If the consumer wants to hear more, he can order the artist's CD and get it a couple of days. Or, as some Internet Models project, consumers would pay to download an entire album's worth of music from a particular group in .mp3 format. However, that still leads to the potential that someone could then turn around and trade those files, which will happen.
Yes, the industry is working on alternatives and everyone with a stake has their own ideas. There are many ways around the problem, but the fact remains that it is already too late. Too many people have the software and the knowledge. And if users of services like Napster feel threatened that the Industry will take away their free music, than those users will go even further underground to get their fix. You cannot turn back time by filing a law suit. The Music Industry will never be the same as it was before the Internet.
But a new Music Industry may evolve, that will center more on developing artists for long term popularity, rather than short term profits. Focusing more on talent and good music, rather than trendy bubble pop that will be forgotton next week. Why listen to the cover version by the band du jour, when you can download the original recording by the original artist online right now. We take license to say that John Lennon would prefer that young people today heard his original recordings, rather than an imitation recorded by some band born after his assassination. Afterall, a fake Picasso is still a fake, and not worth nearly as much as the original.
But that is true opportunity the Internet offers to the Music Industry in general, but more importantly the Artist. Songs are no longer as disposable as they once were, as many back catalog songs are available online. As bands develop a more hardcore following, those fans will seek out every album and song the band ever recorded. Artists should first focus more on making better original music in order to attract fans to their unique sounds. Listeners will take the time to download a single from a band they haven't heard of, just to check it out. But if they don't like what they hear, they won't give the artist a second chance.
The Future of Music on the Internet
This is an unique opportunity for the Music Industry, analogous to the dramatic rise of College Radio in the 1980's. Back then, the industry barely took notice to the small upstart stations that rose up on a thousand campuses throughout the country. They started playing records from bands no one ever heard of, like U2 and Depeche Mode. One of the first true College Radio crossover records, by Tracy Chapman, broke at college radio because none of the commercial radio promoters knew what to do with her debut album. But Fast Car was a smash, and 1 Million album sales later, Tracy Chapman's "overnight success" forced every major label to take College Radio seriously. All the majors opened in house College Promotion departments.
However the Music Industry changed College Radio, like they changed every other style of music that reached widespread popularity. The industry turned that "college radio sound" into a commercial format, then pounded every college station in the country with an all out blitz of mass music marketing. Shell shocked Student MD's, just a year or two out of high school, succumbed to the "stars in your eyes" dazzle of the marketing machine in high gear. The result: The horrible homogenization of all things "alternative"; the over promotion that has caused complete apathy among young MD's; which has ultimately lead to the decline of College Radio. If Tracy Chapman released her debut album today no one would notice her brilliance. All the overhyped and under-talented "stars" shoved down programmers throats over the years, have made them completely numb to musical treasures that come along only once in a great while.
There are many ways the Music Industry can benefit from the Internet without bleeding to death, or wasting time, money and resources in court. Rather than attack those violating copyrights, cooperate with them and turn the "priacy" into promotion. This has already been done with MP3.com, and will be what becomes of the "New Napster". Rather than spend money suing a site operator that will only benefit from the publicity of a lawsuit, why not offer the site a "promotional budget" to only offer the latest new tracks from their label. It would be alot cheaper and would result in a positive image with consumers, rather than an incentive for consumers to continue to rebel against the Major Label Machine.
But most importantly, we see Artists and Audiences as being the biggest beneficiaries of the Internet. What a better way for Musicians both popular and unknown, to reach out an make a personal connection with their fans. As the Internet population grows and connection speeds increase, so grows the number of people who will start downloading music. We see a future where the Internet is populated by millions of audiophiles downloading audio files, and interacting with peers all over the world. Where bands can host their own sound files, or perhaps run their own channel, and interact with fans on a daily or even hourly basis. And we can see how great music by great artists that never got that "lucky break to the mainstream", can now have a chance to be heard by anyone from anywhere at any time.
The future of the Music Industry is quite bright indeed. Only it will be a very different industry that will emerge in the next few years. Oh, there will always be Major Labels putting out pop crap, and Indies trying to make it on their own. But the consumer will determine the future of the Music Industry, with the Internet as the battleground. In the end, Music will become the most important part of the Music Business, once and for all. We're just going to have to endure a few dozen more lawsuits before we get there.
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