Product Description

For the next generation of players and downloaders, a provocative scenario from a music industry think tank.



From the Music Research Institute at Berklee College of Music comes a manifesto for the ongoing music revolution. Today, th

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #48198 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-26
• Released on: 2002-06-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 197 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780876390597
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
In what could be one of the most provocative music books published this year, two innovators in music technology take a fascinating look at the impact of the digital revolution on the music business and predict "a future in which music will be like water: ubiquitous and free-flowing." Kusek and Leonhard foresee the disappearance of CDs and record stores as we know them in the next decade; consumers will have access to more products than ever, though, through a vast range of digital radio channels, person-to-person Internet file sharing and a host of subscription services. The authors are especially good at describing how the way current record companies operate - as both owners and distributors of music, with artists making less than executives - will also drastically change: individual CD sales, for example, will be replaced by "a very potent 'liquid' pricing system that incorporates subscriptions, bundles of various media types, multi-access deals, and added-value services." While the authors often shift from analysts into cheerleaders for the über-wired future they predict - "Let's replace inefficient content-protection schemes with effective means of sharing-control and superdistribution!" - their clearly written and groundbreaking book is the first major statement of what may be "the new digital reality" of the music business in the future. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Customer Reviews

Alright already!
This is a case of a lot of filler to make what could be communicated in a short essay into a book. The basic message "The music industry has to embrace digital technology." This and a few other salient points are made early in the book and then repeated with different wording ad nauseum. I would suggest standing in the store, reading the introductory stuff and skimming the rest. Too many authors are doing this these days. It should have been a magazine article.

Stirs ideas, but repetitive and overreaching
I bought this book because I am getting into the digital music business. I enjoyed reading it, but I didn't much care for the wording in the book, and I think the authors are overreaching in the sense that they are expecting too much from artists in the industry.

This book clarifies the differences between the record and music industry, and emphasizes the effect of file sharing on digital medias (Limewire, Bearshare, programs) and the record industry. It makes some significant points, and makes the same points again later on in the book. The author states that artists should be able to sustain careers rather easily without "getting signed" and that is not the case today. Artists still need capital for marketing on the internet, and in marketing it is possible, but still costly.

This book is worth reading if you are getting into the business. I don't regret buying it, but I think other books may have a more definite impact on the reader. What it boils down to is opinion, and mine vary slightly in some cases and greatly in others.

A compelling manifesto
By declaring their book a manifesto, the authors of this excellent book make their bias and intentions clear. While the arguments for their vision are compelling, this is not a ride for the sceptic.

The book is a comprehensive exploration of a number of key areas of the music industry and a powerful argument for change in the recording industry. When they drift into philosophy towards the end the results are a little lacklustre, but the industry-focussed content is well put together and very useful for anyone wanting to picture how music might work in a decade's time.