Globalization in the Music industry
Globalization in the Music Industry
Jonathan Ben Ami
ACOM 388
The music industry has been around for over two centuries (PBS). Its volatility can be measured by its ability to shift and change according to its time period, the technologies that arise through the ages and the public’s shift in musical taste. The music industry is comprised of many different components, organizations and individuals that operate within it. Some of these components include the artists who compose the music themselves, the producers that engineer the sounds created by the artists, the companies that handle distribution and promotion of the recorded music, the broadcasters of the music such as radio stations, and professionals who assist the artists to further and better their livelihoods, such as lawyers and managers. All of these components work in cohesion to compose what is the larger industry of music.
In order to fully understand how the music industry has survived and changed in the face of obstacles, one must look at its short history. The music industry only really started to emerge in the 19th century when sheet music began to be printed and distributed. People did not listen to recorded music until 1877 when Thomas Edison invented the original phonograph, so instead they would buy sheet music and play the music for themselves. Over the next century technologies were invented that streamlined the recording and listening of music such as creation of records, jukeboxes and the household radio. Mass production techniques were invented at the turn of the century that allowed music listening to become a regular past time, which propelled the profits of the music industry. Household music listening soon became adopted worldwide and thus shaped the industry that we know today.
Globalization has both benefited and plagued the modern music industry. It has allowed for the worldwide spread of music globally through technological
Jonathan Ben Ami
ACOM 388
The music industry has been around for over two centuries (PBS). Its volatility can be measured by its ability to shift and change according to its time period, the technologies that arise through the ages and the public’s shift in musical taste. The music industry is comprised of many different components, organizations and individuals that operate within it. Some of these components include the artists who compose the music themselves, the producers that engineer the sounds created by the artists, the companies that handle distribution and promotion of the recorded music, the broadcasters of the music such as radio stations, and professionals who assist the artists to further and better their livelihoods, such as lawyers and managers. All of these components work in cohesion to compose what is the larger industry of music.
In order to fully understand how the music industry has survived and changed in the face of obstacles, one must look at its short history. The music industry only really started to emerge in the 19th century when sheet music began to be printed and distributed. People did not listen to recorded music until 1877 when Thomas Edison invented the original phonograph, so instead they would buy sheet music and play the music for themselves. Over the next century technologies were invented that streamlined the recording and listening of music such as creation of records, jukeboxes and the household radio. Mass production techniques were invented at the turn of the century that allowed music listening to become a regular past time, which propelled the profits of the music industry. Household music listening soon became adopted worldwide and thus shaped the industry that we know today.
Globalization has both benefited and plagued the modern music industry. It has allowed for the worldwide spread of music globally through technological