File Sharing

File sharing has intensified the ability to distribute music faster than ever before forcing the industry to think about this problem in a new way. It was a crisis for the music companies like Sony Music, Warner Music, and Universal/Polygram. They underestimated the capabilities of the web slowing down their progress, initially, in taking down pirated music. This meant that people had access to all kinds of music at the click of a button. You had to know what you were looking for, but this was still faster than waiting in line at the record store. Nowadays, physical media like vinyls, CDs, and cassettes are all coveted by collectors and music lovers alike. People now see these forms of media as obsolete but understand the amount of effort that is put into them, therefore only the few that really enjoy music or simply never want to leave the past periods of music truly find the ritual of listening to physical media enjoyable far more than listening online. This shaped a generation of listeners less constrained by industry marketing. They choose how to enjoy music much rather than feel obligated to do so. Before the web you had to be in person waiting in line for the latest CD to come out.

Fans were moving quickly to reap the benefits that the web had provided, tech companies moving in sync with music culture, created MP3 players, like the RIO 500, that connected to your computer through a USB connection and allowed you to download the music from the web straight onto the device for free. In an archived interview with BBC news reporter Robin Denselow, he discusses the current shape of music culture and the web with many different perspectives. One that was the most insightful was with DIY folk singer Kate Rusby. She explained to Denselow how major record labels were signing new artists and stripping them from their rights. The music that they put effort into making was now owned by the record label for the most part. The internet allowed her to gain popularity very quickly in her small hometown in Yorkshire, England. She explained her system and how it worked and how her image really shaped the way that people interacted with her music. It was interesting to see everyone being involved; her sister, mother, father, and brother all had a role in managing her online presence(BBC Archive, 1999).

Another interview that was head turning was the way that big moguls from the record companies talked about the web. Mark Marot, a managing director at Island Records owned by Universal, explained that the early adopters were cutting out 90% of the market, and that the internet and web was not going to replace the current market or attitudes of the current market. If they continued to employ this method they wouldn’t get very far(BBC Archive, 1999). Asserting this type of authority and message, common for music industry moguls at this time, only further alienated their listeners by targeting them rather than focusing on the structural issues of digital culture. This reinforced the idea that the music industry was hostile to its own audience.

The response to file sharing would ultimately reshape the industry itself. The late 1990s marked the beginning of a long transition away from physical sales as the primary source of revenue. While this shift was not immediate, the seeds were planted during this period. Labels began to explore digital distribution, artists reconsidered how albums functioned as artistic units, and listeners grew accustomed to accessing music on demand. The internet did not destroy music culture, it simply emphasized what was already there. Creating space for much more music by making it accessible, pushing community through forums and personalized music websites, and adding value to the music for the people that wanted it.