“One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain” – Bob Marley
The Nostalgia ...
It is difficult when my thoughts drifts to another place, a place in time not so long ago when I would sit for hours carefully selecting and placing LPs gently on the turntable, “don’t scratch them” would be the one phrase that resonated every time I try listening to my grandaunt’s LPs. I distinctly remember listening to Elvis Presley, Sam Cook, The Temptations, Bob Marley, Super Cat, Yellow Man, Dennis Brown, Ernie Smith, Millie Small, Connie Francis, Prince Buster and the list goes on and on. My father still plays his CDs (list is too comprehensive to write) every Sunday for at least 6 hours in the late afternoon and sits on his porch with a drink in his hand watching the sunset closing the day. Currently, I have a very eclectic taste in music that has been fueled by a music filled childhood.
Listening to music with my family has been one of my fondest memories; especially the times spent with my grandaunt who passed away three years ago. In contrast to the memories of music, I remember waiting for months to see a movie, rushing to the video rental shop to access the tape and watching the movie on a VCR. Now it is Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and Pandora to name a few. However, in the 21st century the music and movie landscape changed as a result of technology. The way we now consume these two mediums have been drastically altered by the technological advancements in the 21st century.
The Reality ...
Many individuals may say that technology has fulfilled the need for users to be closer to the music and the movies and, this can be classified as “instant gratification” (iTunes Killing the Music Industry CC, 2017). Digital technologies have not only revolutionized the music and movie industry, but it has also altered global cultures as a result of “disruptive innovation” (Francois Moreau, 2013). Disruptive innovation forms a new marketplace and interrupts an existing market; whereby, shifting established markets (How to Spot Disruptive Innovation Opportunities CC, 2017).
Close examination of this definition reveals that over the past century, both music and movies have been in constant disruption as technological advances permeate both industries. Furthermore, Anand Divekar (2016) reveals that over the past twenty years the history of technological disruptions which have shaped consumer culture and as a result of the disruptions, there have been births to new and beneficial technologies (MP3 and iTunes) for the music and movie industries, but unfortunately it has also created the avenues for piracy (CDs, File Sharing and Napster).
The Truth ...
Ultimately, my consumption of music has been drastically altered over the past twenty years. One may even ask the question – who doesn’t honestly enjoy free entertainment? Watch a movie you don't need to pay for, or simply listen to songs that you thought were lost. The inception of the web and disruptive innovations opened numerous avenues where free digital entertainment have become profits for many individuals. Then again, how is this fair to the musicians and singers and actors and production crews who have worked tirelessly to create entertainment? In my younger years, knowledge of copyright infringement never existed and having full access to pirate movies, that was luxury. However, I no longer share these same insights today and I believe that as a result of technology, innumerable challenges with regards to piracy and copyright infringement have clouded the music and movie industry.
Then again, hasn’t the technological age given rise to unimaginable creativity that no one perceived?
References
COM 565 How to Spot Disruptive Innovation Opportunities CC. (2017, April 25). [YouTube]. Retrieved August 27, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfAs22r_LHQ
COM 565 iTunes Killing the Music Industry CC. (2017, April 25). [YouTube]. Retrieved August 27, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6cI-WXmSnI
Divekar, A. (2016, August 8). DIGITAL DISRUPTION: THE MUSIC INDUSTRY. eco-bridge. Retrieved August 27, 2018, from http://www.eco-bridge.com/2016/08/08/digital-disruption-the-music-industry/
Fruman, C. (2016, June 22). Keeping pace with digital disruption: Regulating the sharing economy. [Image] Retrieved August 27, 2018, from http://blogs.worldbank.org/psd/voices/keeping-pace-digital-disruption-regulating-sharing-economy
Gizmodo Australia. (2016, July 14). Deals: Your All-Access Pass To Netflix, Hulu And Other US Streaming Services. [Image] Retrieved August 27, 2018, from https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2016/06/heres-your-all-access-pass-to-netflix-hulu-and-other-us-streaming-services/
Moreau, F. (2013). The Disruptive Nature of Digitization: The Case of the Recorded Music Industry. International Journal of Arts Management, 15(2), 18-32. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281403788_The_Disruptive_Nature_of_Digitization_The_Case_of_the_Recorded_Music_Industry
Marley, R. (1975). Trench Town Rock (Live). [YouTube]. Retrieved August 27, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NW-GmB2qpw
