Is the accessibility of free digital music downloads destroying the recording industry - Essay Example

Introduction There are a number of stakeholders that are involved in the production of music. When a CD is sold at a particular price, it is a reflection of all the parties involved in talent spotting, equipment purchasing, recording, mixing, synchronising, merchandising, publishing, distributing and broadcasting of the song/album. Almost all these people depend on the sale of that CD to earn a living. 1 Therefore, if there are other avenues of accessing their music without payment, then those stakeholders will be adversely affected. It is almost futile to try and compete with free offers yet record Companies are trying to get a return on their investments. The details of how free internet downloads affect the music industry will be examined in the subsequent part of the essay.2 How free music downloads via the internet are affecting the recording industry Recording artists Recording artists put a lot of time and effort to come up with products that gain appreciation from various audiences. It will only be considered fair if these same recording artists got a reward for their efforts. By downloading their music for free from the internet, recording artists are denied the chance of benefiting from their sweat.3 For recording artists who may not be well known or those trying to make a name for themselves in the industry, it becomes very difficult to offset all the payments and expenses that come with production of an album or even a song. They have to pay royalties to a host of parties involved in the process of recording songs, going on tour, purchase of equipment, hiring lawyers or paying up record Companies or any agents that were involved on the production process. Therefore all their investments end up going to other sources. It is a fact that most of the revenue generated in the recording industry is attributed to CD sales or album sales. The internet has caused a sharp reduction in these sales consequently making the artists who make a living from it suffer greatly.4 Free downloads also severely affect upcoming artists. This is because young artists are considered as a sort of investment. When a record Company takes on a new artist, they are basically swimming in unknown waters; it is considered a risk because the new artist may or may not succeed. Therefore, there should be a substantial amount of capital for such a venture and the major source of this capital is through record sales. 5 Consequently, new artists will not be promoted by record Companies if the capital required to do so is insufficient. And in case these new artists are taken on by the record Companies then their album sales may not be high enough to generate profits since most of their CDs will have been obtained illegally through the web. It is a proven fact that most new artists need plenty of time to learn the tricks of the trade but if their sales are not high enough, then this will diminish their chances of recording a second album since most record Companies will consider them as a liability.6 Lastly, artists no longer feel like they have control over their music any more. The purpose of copyright laws was to make sure that artist have a say on how their music is sold, distributed and broadcasted, but with the introduction of free online downloads, artists no longer feel like their fate is in their own hands. Most of the decisions to buy their music are made without their input and they are left at the mercy of piracy websites. Producers In relation to the issue of venturing less into experimental music, music listeners themselves get less quality music. Failure to generate adequate sales from CDs will eventually cause producers within record Companies to stick to well known artists who are already established and who may guarantee a return on investment. This means that some fresh talent somewhere will not get signed up by producers.7 Producers also tend to avoid some genres of music that may not be well known; they have started becoming more cautious in their business deals. They now want to deal with music or artists who already have proven records. In the end, listeners will get less variety and may be subjected to the same type of music that they have been hearing all along. This may probably be the reason why most listeners these days complain frequently of repetition and ‘hearing the same things over and over again’ when buying new CDs. 8 Producers have also changed the way they generate revenue. Previously most producers used to ask for a commission on sales recorded on any album sales. However, this has changed since producers have realised that CD sales are not generating as much income as they used to before free downloads became common in the internet; most producers these days look for alternative ways of getting money from the music industry. It is now common place to find some asking for a commission on sales that will be generated from the sale of t-shirts. This was an avenue that most record producers never bothered about but they now realise that they have to look for a new way to survive. Besides this, there are also quite a number of record producers who demand for a portion of the sales generated from tours and concert tickets. It has also become common place to find some asking for royalties from digital Companies that may sell their music in one form or another. Producers may make deals with ring tone providers and amateur video Companies.9 Audio engineers Their purpose is to synchronise and mix music within recording studios after which they get paid for what they have edited, recorded, mixed etc. Therefore more sales imply better pay for audio engineers. But since free internet downloads have reduced this, then audio engineers are not getting substantial rewards for their efforts. In addition, audio engineers usually work on types of music that have been chosen by the record Company. Since record Companies are now sticking to well known/traditional genres of music, then audio engineers are also forced to work on those same songs. Consequently, their jobs are starting to lack creativity and this may also reduce their motivation and quality since they are finding their work repetitive. Since internet downloads started increasing, it is now common place to find that digital sales are more popular. This means that albums are no longer in vogue and is advisable to make singles or to make digital songs. Consequently, audio engineers will have fewer songs to work on. Previously, audio engineers had to focus on managing sound in an entire album. But since record Companies now deal with music that is in smaller units or bite-sized, then there is a possibility of less work for audio engineers. 10 Popular sources on the internet that enable free internet downloads Before one can download free music from the internet, they first need to investigate which CDs are available. This is normally done through some websites that enable this. They include Metacritic and Billboard.com. There are also some radio stations that talk about new song releases thus implying that it is possible to get free CD from such artists.11 After an investigation is done, then listeners can then go to a website of their choice for free music downloads. One of the common methods of accessing free music downloads is through MP3 Blogs. What usually happens in those blogs is that any music enthusiast creates a record of all their best music in MP3s; they then send these MP3s to the internet where other music enthusiasts can download. The blogs vary depending on the genre of music a listener is looking for. If one is looking for Hip Hop or Soul music, then they can visit websites like ‘Hip Hop Ruckus’ and ‘Soul Sides’ whose addresses are http://hiphopruckus.blogspot.com/ and http://soul-sides.com/ respectively, if a listener is interested in Rock music, they can visit ‘Aquarium Drunkard’, or ‘I am fuel, You are Friends’ whose internet addresses are http://www.aquarumdrunkard.com/ and http://fuelfriends.blogspot.com/ respectively. If one is looking for dance music then some of the popular MP3 blogs include ‘Acid Girls’, ’Discobelle’ and ‘Missing Toof’ and their internet addresses include http://www.acid-girls.com/blog/, http://www.discobelle.net/ and http://www.missingtoof.com/ respectively.12 However, since there are vast numbers of songs that are posted to the internet, it can become a very tedious exercise to locate a particular one. Therefore for this purpose, there are some MP3 Blog aggregators designed to make life easy for listeners trying to access free music through them. The aggregators usually arrange free music in order of artists’ names or the names of songs. Examples of aggregators include http//hypem.com/ popularly known as ‘The Hype Machine’ another aggregator is http//elbo.ws/ also known as ‘Elbo.ws’. Normally what one needs to do is to type either a search word or to select a song from the available list that has been posted to the address. Then when the right song comes up, they can view its original blog and download it from there.13 Aside from the use of MP3 blog sites, it is also possible to use search engines like Google to locate a given song or type of music. Google has specific indexes of songs that are available for free downloads. After typing in a specific sequence, one can be able to access a number of songs that are listed in their directory, then all one has to do is to select the type of MP3 that they are interested in downloading.14 It is also possible to find that some artists approve free downloads of the music especially when they are releasing new songs or when a given Record Company would like to expose music from a certain band. This normally creates a buzz around that new artist if the free music sample is of good quality. Besides, it is possible for one to look for these free samples from legitimate websites like iTunes, Sound Click, Pure Volume and also Garage Band with the following internet addresses; http://www.apple.com/itunes/store/ , http://www.soundclick.com/music.cfm/ , http://www.purevolume.com/ and http://www.garageband.com/ respectively. There are also other websites that can allow listeners to download music for free while doing it legally and these include; artist server.com archive.com live music archive epitonic download.com amazon.com spiral frog These songs are usually called audio clips or sample tracks. iTunes usually posts some free samples under a specific section on its website. They usually change these songs from time to time so that people can access new songs as they arise.15 It is also possible to access free music when one visits an official website belonging to a certain artist. There is normally a multimedia section within that official website. Alternatively, one can go to myspace.com music. Here, they can trace for an artist’s myspace page. Some artists go a step further and allow their songs to be downloaded while some simply allow some one to listen to their music but not to download it. The former idea is common among upcoming artists as compared to well known ones. Most bands trying to break into the music world will normally be seen doing this.16 Perhaps the most widespread method of accessing free music is through the concept of file to file sharing. There are a number of ways in which this can be done but the most common is through Bit-Torrent. This is a Protocol for file sharing that enables users to distribute and download multiple files instantaneously. When one needs to download free music through this method, they first have to access a given client who they will share files with. Some examples of clients that one can choose from include Tomato Torrent and Torrent Swapper. However, there are some sites that have been set up to catch those engaging in file sharing and most of them pose as Torrent Clients. But there are ways to go past these spies and people can manoeuvre their way out of getting caught. There are also cases when firewalls (blocks) have been placed but there is a simple way to get through a firewall without being caught too. This is an illegal service that can make one vulnerable to legal action by artists or record Companies affected by the download. Another risk that arises as a result of file sharing is infringement of one’s privacy. File to file sharing opens up one’s computer to unauthorised access by any person. Besides, it also makes one susceptible to viruses and other dangers that come with unrestricted access or overexposure of one’s computer system.17 Figures of sales from legal websites and how they differ from CD sales About twenty years ago in the music industry, there was one main revenue stream from which artists and their respective record Companies could get money from. This meant that there was a sure way in which one could track revenue generated from a new album or song. But with the introduction of online downloads-some of them legal, it is now almost impossible for artists to track the developments and earnings from all the avenues which are available today. One such example is that of R& B sensation Akon. He was one of the most successful artists in the year 2006 judging from the CD sales that were generated at that time. However, this was a relative comparison to what other artists were getting in that same year. This is the breakdown of earnings for Akon’s album in the first week of release of his new album. CD sales-283,000 copies Ring tones sales-269,000 copies iTunes sales-244,000 copies18 This goes to show that what used to happen about a decade ago is nothing short of a dream nowadays. Back then, artists who were considered exceptional would record about half a million in sales but this is no longer happening. 19 Generally, there have been declines seen in the sales of physical recorded albums. Statistics show that in the year 2006, there was a reduction of about 5% of the sale of CDs and albums yet at the very same time; there was an increase in the number of sales at iTune by about 50 %. But this was just a portion of what was recorded in the previous year. In that year-2005, the sale of albums and CDs recorded a decline in sales of a whooping amount which can largely be attributed to the increase of online sales. Also in the year 2002, sales of music CDs reduced by about 7%. However, the number of copies that could be down loaded increased to 900 million from 500 million in the previous year thus showing how album sales are being affected adversely.20 In the year 2006, Niestel Sound scan did a research on the amount of revenue generated from the music industry and realised that revenues had increased by three percent to $ 3 billion yet there are totally different figures that have been recorded for album sales. If there is an increase in revenue in the music industry and a decrease in album sales, then one can deduce that revenue generated is mostly going to the digital music industry. Research has also shown that in Europe, 41% of people who access free downloads from the internet decide not to purchase more music. On the contrary, 19% said they purchase more CDs after viewing it or downloading it from the internet.21 Where money from the music industry comes from When anew rock band, hip-hop band or any new artist for that matter has just entered the recording industry, their first source of income will be from the advances they get from their recording labels. Most recording labels that are reputable can offer about two hundred and fifty thousand dollar advances to new bands per year for the duration of their contract. 22 Another source of income for an artist or music band could be through publishing Companies. This is often plausible for those artists who are well established. Normally what happens is that an artist is paid an advance of say twenty thousand dollars. This is then followed by another amount after they get published. Artists who are still not well known in the industry but have been taken up by a reputable recording Company are also considered for publishing and can make a substantial amount of income from that route. Tours are also becoming a major source of income for artists, producers and other stakeholders in the music industry. Artists can select a specific region which they would like to focus on then they can perform in different venues located around cities in that region. Most of them are well known clubs, restaurants, nightspots and other recreational centres. 23 These tours are normally done through buses and may involve a number of organisers and contributors included in the bus. These individuals may include a crew, equipment and staff to take care of food, drinks and other conveniences. Normally a tour may last for a period of about five weeks. New artists or bands can earn about two thousand dollars for every night that they perform during the tour. Well established bands or artists can get almost double that amount or more depending on the kind of clout which the can pull at that time.24 There has also been an increase in the sale of t-shirts, bracelets and other accessories that have an artist’s name or picture imprinted on them. Normally what happens is that the band under consideration approaches a merchandising Company with an idea of what they would like their t-shirts, bracelets or vests to look like. These merchandising Companies then make out a sample of the product and consult the band for a go ahead. If the band or artist is satisfied, then more products are made. T-shirts can be sold in areas that the artist or band is performing. It is quite a common feature to find a number of them available at the back of theatres, stadiums and arenas where artists are performing. These t-shirts are also distributed to a number of stores that work in conjunction with those merchandising Companies.25 With the introduction of online downloads, recording Companies are now using unusual routes to generate income. For example, there are some amateur videos that are normally posted to youtube.com. Some record Companies have realised that digital music providers are making money off this industry and yet they are not. Therefore some Companies have set the pace in these sectors; a good example is Universal music industry. This is one of the biggest suppliers to youtube.com as they have a vast database of songs. The recording Company has sealed a deal in which they are to get a dollar for every Zune Portable player sold as royalty. Because Microsoft realised that Universal Music is a Company that they could not afford to loose, then they agreed to hold their end of the contract.26 Concerts are also important as a source of income for artists nowadays. This usually applies to those who have established themselves in the industry. This is because the probability that many people will turn up for a concert done by a respected artist is usually high. The main source of income here is through the number of tickets that will be sold in each concert. Artists that have a lot of clout have been known to make millions from these concerts. Here’s a sample of what a relatively modest music band can bring to their respective Companies or to themselves through a number of avenues. -Advances from record Company-$250,000 -Gross income from tours-$50,000 -Advances from merchandising-$20,000 -Advances from Publishing Companies-$20,000 -Sales from iTunes- $ 200,000 -Sales from ring tones- $ 30,00027 However, these figures apply to new artists that may not have established themselves. But some big recording Companies that sign up famous artists may make about $70 billion dollars in income because of the different avenues available to them. As it can be seen, there is a relatively small amount that modest bands can make from legal downloads and ring tones. This is because most songs that are put out belong to artists that are well known. Most blogs or websites start with the most popular artists in sequential order down to the least popular or relatively new artists. Conclusion Free internet downloads have affected many parties involved in the music industry. The first are the artists whose rights are being infringed; they deserve to get paid for their talent and efforts. Besides, new artists are also finding it very difficult to break into the industry since they are no longer making profits. Also, they cannot generate enough revenue to make a second album. Producers have also been affected; the most obvious fact is that they are generating less revenue consequently, some of them are venturing into other streams like commissions on sale of t-shirts, concert tickets and even ring tone sales. Some have made deals with online Companies like iTunes. Besides this, producers are becoming more selective when choosing new artists. This is because they only want to stick to well known genres of music or to well established artists who will guarantee them a return on their investment. Lastly, Audio engineers are also affected by the internet boom. They are getting less payment for their work; they are also being subjected to repetitive work since record Companies want to stick to traditional genres of music. They are also doing less work because Companies these days prefer recording single songs instead of albums.28 There are a variety of websites that are available for listeners to download their favourite music. Listeners can go to MP3 blogs that have music from anyone who has made a log of their favourite types of music. There are also a number of blog aggregators that help in the arrangement and location of songs. Free music downloads can also be obtained from legal websites like iTunes and amazon.com: It also possible to access free music from a given artist’s website. However, this is mostly applicable to new artists who may want to show listeners what they can offer them in the future.29 Internet Companies have made a lot of money from the music industry. Sales recorded for Companies that sell legal music online like iTunes have increased by five percent in the year 2006 and about seven percent in the year 2002. Yet at the same time, recording companies have recorded declines in sales. This is the main reason why most Companies are now venturing into some revenue streams that can be considered unconventional. Some of these include; royalties from ring tone sale and amateur video displays. 30 Generally, the recording industry is loosing a lot of business through free internet down loads. This means that artists, producers, merchandisers, audio engineers and many others are not getting enough payments for their efforts. Therefore, there should be a new way of stopping these free downloads through better firewalls, legal suits and educating the masses on how they are harming their favourite artists. References Batty, M. 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