Friday, July 22, 2011

The Internet's Influence On Music Libraries Evolution

By Eric James


Everything in a society changes as the overall technology in that society grows, and music is no exception. The internet, the fastest growing form of communication, was bound to become intertwined with music, the most historic form of artistic communication. As the internet continues to advance, it has become an important portion of the media industry, such as music libraries.

As with any new, widely accessible invention, the internet was feared for its easy and quick distribution of items and ideas. Many music labels and artists set forth an endeavor to prevent the use of the web as a means to spread their creations illegally. However, the progressive internet and those who inhabit it could not be stopped.

Music companies began to see that stopping the technology was a futile task and switched over to using it to their advantage. Even small music labels and indie bands sought refuge online as their source of distribution. It provided a quick and inexpensive way to spread the word of one's band or record company.

With internet acting as a proliferation zone for both standard genres and subgenres, personal audio libraries are becoming extremely diverse. Although illegal downloading is still prevalent within society, producers have taken notice of the possible marketing techniques through free song downloads. Many companies are now offering free song samples and limited time specials to customers as an incentive for further purchase.

Apple's iTunes Store has developed along side the web to better serve their clients. The iTunes Store is an online, one stop shopping center for all of a person's musical needs. Everything from entire CD albums to individually priced songs are available to the public. Not only has iTunes expanded their music library by allowing small bands to upload their creations to their database, but they have also recently added the ability to rent and buy movies and shows.

Online access has allowed the music library itself to change in not only what is contained with the Internet upgrades, as well as the libraries themselves, have allowed the customer to listen to music he or she is interested in before purchasing it. The libraries have now become much more than a mere location holding a vast amount of songs, now they come with options for the customer to personalize the store to his or her desires. This ability to personalize also allowed for the advent of Genius, an Apple program that makes suggestions for the customer based on past purchases and personalization changes.

The internet has proved itself to be a guaranteed source of endless possibilities for many people and industries. The transformation of music collections from a physical library of records, cassettes and CDs, to an intangible virtual form has the web to thank. Even though there are those who see the online virtual music libraries as a deviation from the norm, there is no doubt that internet connection will continue to change how people use them.




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