The Future of the Music Industry
Sunday, September 13, 2009 by M. Maca
In April of this year, the frontman for popular industrial rock band Reznor recorded an interview with Digg.com founder Kevin Rose (Trent Reznor digg dialog). Just to give a brief background, Reznor has been somewhat of a pioneer in the music industry, battling against the corporate hand that feeds in an attempt to secure fairer prices on music. This caused a fallout with his record company and the band has since become independant, releasing two albums to fans for free.
During the course of the digg dialog, Reznor discusses (among other things) the direction he sees the music industry turning in the near future. His analysis of the current state of the industry is that record labels are somewhat afraid to embrace file sharing as a means to advertise and gain greater support for the bands they have signed. His belief is that by offering his music free to download, more people will become aware of "the brand of Nine Inch Nails" which will increase sales of physical goods such as concert tickets. Reznor sees the future abandoing traditional forms of distribution and sale of music, making way for subscription plans allowing users to download any quantity they desire for a flat rate.
Currently, the music industry is facing a crisis with file sharing leaving users with no incentive to purchase music. Surely there must be a way, possibly through more strategic advertising or some other means, for file sharing to continue to offer music for free or for a minimal cost while also putting some money in the pocket of the artist. Perhaps Reznor's strategies are the future or perhaps there are means no one can even comprehend presently.
For anyone who is interested, here is the link to nin.com, the official website of Nine Inch Nails.