The Music Industry Today

Today, the music industry has embraced online music stores as a viable method of distributing music to consumers. Digital music sales have steadily increased over the years, as purchases of CDs and other physical formats of music have decreased. If you don't believe me or the recent new headlines just read these two articles from Wired Magazine where David Byrne interviews Thom Yorke about the Real Value of Music and Byrne offers advise on Survival Strategies for Emerging Artists — and Megastars. Music sales in general are decreasing due to widespread piracy over the Internet. However, digital music sales are increasing. See the chart below.

This posting offers some insight into the operations of the leading online music retailers. Most importantly highlighting and comparing their major features and whether or not they sell DRM and/or DRM-Free songs. Also, whether they have a subscription or non-subscription business model and if they have the support of the four major record labels. Below, some pertinent facts are listed:

• There are only Four Major Record Companies. EMI, Universal, Sony BMG (The latter a merger between Sony Music Entertainment and BMG)


• Napster was reconfigured by Roxio, Inc in 2003 as subscription and a fee-per-song business model, paying the record companies and the artists/composers the royalties. As of May 2008, Napters now has the largest DRM-free subscription service featuring 100 % content from the major labels content to in the MP3 format.


• Emusic is the largest subscription-based online music store


• Rhapsody was first online music store to offer streaming on demand access to entire library


• Amazon MP3 was first online music store to sell music without DRM


• Record Companies are easing demands for DRM and adopting unprotected MP3s shown by numerous such deals with music stores.

• Apple iTunes Music Store is now the number 1 US Music Retailer as of January 2008 surpassing Wal-Mart based on a NPD research.

The table blow gives you a picture of the online music stores today. Click on the image to enlarge

References:

Byrne, David. (2007). David Byrne and Thom Yorke on the Real Value of Music. Wired Magazine: Issue 16.01. 12.18.07

Byrne, David. (2007). David Byrne's Survival Strategies for Emerging Artists — and Megastars. Wired Magazine: Issue 16.01. 12.18.07

Sandoval, Greg. (2008). The geeks were right; music labels bow to technology. CNet New.Com. Retrieve April 5th 2008 from News.Com <http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9911721-7.html?tag=nefd.lede>

Wikipedia.Org. (2008). Amazon MP3. Retrieved April 5th, 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_MP3

Wikipedia.Org. (2008). Zune Marketplace. Retrieved April 5th, 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zune_Marketplace#Zune_Marketplace

Wikipedia.Org. (2008). Rhapsody. Retrieved April 5th, 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhapsody_%28online_music_service%29

Wikipedia.Org. (2008). Emusic. Retrieved April 5th, 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emusic

Wikipedia.Org. (2008). ITunes Store. Retrieved April 5th, 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITunes_Store

Wikipedia.Org. (2008). Napster pay service. Retrieved April 5th, 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napster_%28pay_service%29