Downloads and the Changing Face of the Music Industry

Digital music sales now generate around $2 billion in revenue for the music industry, with tracks available through 500 online services located in 40 countries, representing around 10 per cent of the global music market. With so many people now using the internet to, not only buy new music, but to discover new acts, the music industry as a whole has had to adapt.

In the embryonic stages of downloading music from the internet, either directly from websites or on peer to peer file sharing networks, many within the music industry were outraged that people could download copyrighted music without paying for it, depriving the artists and record labels of revenue. The battle between the artists and file sharing networks reached a peak in 2000 when Lars Ulrich, drummer with the multi million selling band Metallica, sued Napster, the file sharing service that had Metallica's entire back catalogue available for free download. The case was settled out of court, resulting in 300,000 users of Napster banned from the service and the demise of the Napster service itself.

Following the Napster controversy, The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) launched its first lawsuits against individuals downloading illegal music files on September 2003 and now currently files 700 to 750 suits a month against individuals downloading music and not paying for it. The campaign from the RIAA to sue downloaders was initally criticised by many, suggesting that it is unfair to choose certain individuals to sue out of millions, but the RIAA hopes their campaign will force people to respect the copyrights of music labels and minimise the instances of music piracy.

The huge impact of digital downloads was illustrated in early 2005, when downloaded tracks outsold physical singles in the UK for the first time in history. This propmted The Official UK Charts Company to begin to incorporate downloads into the UK Singles Chart. The Billboard Hot 100 in the United States also began to incorporate digital downloads into its chart around this time too, with the biggest selling download to date held by rapper Flo Rida, with sales of his single "Low" now around 4 million.

Perhaps the biggest change to the music industry due to the impact of digital downloads is the fact that artists can now make their music available to their fans directly, and without the need for a record label to distribute the music for them. Some artists, most notably Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, have offered their music to listeners for free, sometimes in deifance of their record labels.

With more and more artists making their music available to fans directly from the source, the music industry is going to have to continue to adapt to the changing climate. Revenue for record labels has contracted by 4.6% over the past year due to the ease with which music fans can download tracks. Better services provided by online music stores and the continuing development of high speed broadband could mean that the future of the music industry lies in the digital marketplace and not with the record labels that have dominated the industry since its inception.

About the Author: Victoria Cochrane writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.