The Effect Of The Internet on Music

 A recent article in the Guardian stated that, ' although the internet has expanded the audience for media, it has all but destroyed the market for it' and blamed 'rampant piracy' for the declining music industry. However, Patrik Wikstrom, (author of 'Music the Cloud')1, believes that the only reason the music industry has survived in modern society is because, 'it has completely shifted its centre of gravity from the physical to the virtual'. Therefore, I will look at the statistics and opinions involved in the evolution of the music industry before the internet and after on this page. 

The Music Industry Before the Internet

In a survey of one hundred people, twelve of who are over fifty,  59 believed that music does not have the same impact on society as it has done over the last century and 85 believe they can download any song within five minutes2. These statistics would suggest that the accessibility of music over the internet has contributed to its loss in value, however music has always been consumed in many ways and the industry is still alive. The first British record sales chart ("The Hit Parade") did not appear until 14th November 1952 in the music paper,the New Musical Express. It was during the 1950s that single sales began to be recorded, with the highest selling of the decade being Bill Haley's 'Rock Around the Clock' selling 1,390,000 copies and since then record sales have been a massive part of the music industry. However, these sales where based on the combined sales of several record shops, based mainly in London and so could easily be manipulated, as well as physical records being flimsy due to lasting material rations from the war and so was described by the BBC as 'hopelessly inaccurate'. Therefore, many people at the time relied on radio, which has managed to remain a staple source of music and information into the 21st century with 91% of the British population listening to radio every week in 20133. 

Glastonbury 1970/2010 40th anniversary

Festivals have been at the centre of the modern music industry and seem to be of increasing importance to each new generation. The growth of major festivals like the Isle of Wight, Reading and Glastonbury from a few hundred people to nearly half a million combined in 20114, serves to highlight the importance music still has on society. Furthermore, the fact that music is still at the forefront of such occasions as festivals and defines peoples identity like those in the above videos, proves that it has not lost any sentimental value in society even if it has its monetary. 

Music Television

 In 1961 the music show 'Pick of the Pops' would be watched by a quarter of Britain's population every Saturday night, in which they could listen to the newest music and upcoming acts as  well as finding out that weeks chart5. Now in the 21st century less than a million tune in to watch equivalent shows like Jools Holland6, however with the growing phenomenon of reality TV with shows like X factor attracted 20 million viewers at their peak. Furthermore, 'Pick of the Pops' was described by broadcaster Rob Harris as the 'social media of its time', and a recent survey by the Telegraph shows around a quarter of UK's population to be active users of twitter7, which along with websites like YouTube and Facebook serves the music industry by being able to share and discover music, although for no monetary profit. Such statistics serve to prove that the music industry is evolving due to its mass availability and has just as many positives as negatives in terms of the people enjoying music in new ways.

Evolution of Technology 

In the 1980s with the advent of portable radios and the Walkman in 1990, music was no subjected to a set location. This had a massive effect globally, becoming the new way to share and listen to music especially with its availability and suitability for public transport and exercise. This may have been the start of music as something that was being over exploited and quickly losing its significance, however if anything this only spurred the public's interest in music with the new compact CD's gaining some of the highest sales figures ever. Socially, the older generations have always preferred the music they see as familiar from their younger years as is reflected in the survey of a hundred people in which 100% of those over 50 said music has lost some of its meaning over the last fifty years1. Similarly, fashion and music groups throughout the years have preferred to avoid the top twenty, as is shown in the BBC's program 'Pop Charts Britannia' where a young punk says the charts 'are mostly rubbish, with the occasional classic'. Whereas to the younger generations now, this lingering opinion is dismissed and thought of as only a modern viewpoint due to the internet and need for record companies to produce singles that will appeal mainly to young teenagers. Therefore, the biggest selling songs over the last century have often been avoided and overshadowed by niche markets and individual groups, this again shows that music has not lost its value and it has always been appreciated in the same ways regardless of technology.

References:

1)The music industry: Music in the Cloud, Patrik Wikstrom, Polity Press, 2009

2) https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AsoBLfQBv34HdE01NFZnMEhtbUhkS0djLU1YQzJPdkE&usp=drive_web#gid=0

3) www.rajar.co.uk, RAJARData Release 2013 

4)www.festivalinsights.com, Festival-Market-Report-2009.

5) BBC Pop charts Britannia, BBC2 Documentary, 14/01/14

6)BARB, broadcasting audience research board, television viewing figures, 2013

7) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/twitter/10291360/Twitter-claims-15m-active-users-in-the-UK.html