The music industry: music in the cloud (DMS Digital Music and Society), Second edition

摘要

The second edition of The music industry: Music in the cloud includes expanded sections on social media, online business models and the structure of the music industry, as well as discussions from the previous edition about the techniques the music industry is adopting to recast itself in relation to the digital media revolution of the last 10 years or so. This involves an exploration of'the Cloud' and how this might impact the operational logic of the music industry more broadly (a shift from its current state - a copyright industry - to something else), as more traditional models are increasingly challenged by the proliferation of digital technologies, media sharing and new forms of audience/fan engagement. Wikstrom offers a substantial overview of industry business models and how these might be adapted, including the use of licensing and the growth of the live music sector as new(er) forms of income stream. The various mergers and acquisitions which now define the bigger players in the record industry are also detailed, alongside a useful consideration of how digital platforms such as Spotify and iTunes have refashioned consumption and, to a lesser extent, production practices at different levels within the industry. The later chapters of the book shift away from these initial structures to consider how musicians and fans might be more actively involved in these processes, and here there are potentially some issues with the ways in which the agency of these groups are framed.