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Technology Never Sleeps
September 17, 2010
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"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
-- Arthur C. Clarke, author of '2001: A Space Odyssey'This week comes the news there is "a new photonic chip that works on light rather than electricity has been built by an international research team, paving the way for the production of ultra-fast quantum computers with capabilities far beyond today's devices." (Source: 'Computers Set For Quantum Leap', The Financial Times, http://tiny.cc/prvtf )
While the technology will initially be used by scientists to "design complex molecules, such as new drugs and other materials, that cannot be simulated with ordinary computers. More general consumer applications should follow."
Of course "more general consumer applications" will no doubt include the lightning speed delivery of media content to your desktop PC, laptop, or smartphone.
According to the article, such advanced technology was originally believed to be at least 25 years away. Now, it might only be five years before such computers are up and running.
Imagine computers with the ability to download not one film, but a small library in seconds; not one album, but the entire catalog of an artist in the blink of an eye. It's just a matter of crunching the numbers and getting the ones and zeroes to move from one location to your location faster than a speeding bullet. It's going to happen.
The Internet is already the fastest direct-to-the-consumer distribution system ever created. With computers able to process billions of digital calculations, that distribution system will only become that much more efficient and convenient for consumers.
One thing we know about all the advances in technology developed: it eventually means lower prices for the consumer. PCs that sold for $1,000 and more just five years ago, are already no competition for the faster and more advanced PCs available today. HDTVs were cost-prohibitive to many when first introduced, and now prices have dropped considerably, putting them in more homes everyday.
In 'Rust Never Sleeps' Neil Young sang, "Hey, hey, My, My, Rock and Roll can never die, There's more to the picture that meets the eye"
More to the picture than meets the eye, indeed.
Lots of music moving in terabyte quantities all over the globe direct to consumers. Your industry homework assignment: Start thinking about the ways the music industry can benefit from all these developments, and write those thoughts down on your iPads, laptops, netbooks, PCs. Print, and submit for review.
No late papers will be accepted.
Technology never sleeps.
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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 2
SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO? ...HOWARD STERN MIGHT LEAVE SIRIUS
Probably no one was more instrumental in moving people to satellite radio than Howard Stern.
At the height of his popularity on terrestrial radio, where his morning show was heard in most major markets and ruled in the ratings, Howard received a big offer from Sirius and took it. Many thought he was crazy because he would never have an audience the size he had on terrestrial radio. He wouldn't, but it made no difference. Crazy like a fox, Howard grabbed the opportunity to launch his show on satellite and went on almost every late-night talk-show to promote his move to satellite radio.
A whole lot of people subscribed to Sirius in the beginning. Howard is credited by Standard & Poor for attracting as many as two million subscribers when he moved to Sirius in January 2006. And yes, in the process, Howard made tons of money.
Howard started talking about the possibility of his not staying on Sirius when his contract expires a just last week, and he has mentioned that perhaps he will carry on his show (in some part) online. You can read more about that here in a recent post by Jerry Del Colliano, 'Howard Stern, Digital Media Pioneer', here: http://tiny.cc/r2jup
In the meantime, Sirius XM Radio says if Howard does leave, they will keep adding listeners ... and at a lower cost. Read about it all here: http://tiny.cc/ovqia
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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 3
IT'S NOT JUST THE INTERNET THAT'S CUTTING INTO CD SALES
Microsoft released its latest title in the 'Halo' video game series, 'Halo: Reach' this week, and promptly announced that the title for its Xbox 360 gaming system generated $200 million in global sales on its first day of release. (Source: http://tiny.cc/j53ej )
Of course, it's not news that video games are big business and that hit titles (like those in the 'Halo' series) bring in hundreds of millions of dollars annually, but when such retail explosions take place, it should remind a whole lot of people in the music industry that the Internet and illegal file-sharing isn't to blame entirely for decreasing CD sales.
It should also serve as a notice to Hollywood film studios as well, that declining DVD sales are not necessarily due to people illegally downloading movies. Higher box office ticket prices, coupled with more available entertainment options available for the consumer than ever before in history, mean it is getting harder and harder to generate the types of revenues Hollywood could count on in the past.
Disposable income by households is down significantly (do a Google search on that and you'll find plenty of results) and that means everybody is spending less an watching what they spend very carefully. The demographics for the people buying video games parallels (in most cases) the same demographics for active music buyers. When those demographics are spending $200 million globally in one day on a video game, it takes a large chunk of those disposable income dollars out of circulation.
When a video game title can gross $200 million in one day, it means that despite the economy, despite less disposable income, when it comes to wanting to be entertained, people find the money to do so.
And they find the money to do so when they find the movies that entertain them, and the music that does the same.
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The Futurehit.DNA Challenge
Good friend Jay Frank, the SVP/Music Strategy for CMT (who oversees music strategy as it relates to all of the network's on-air and digital music initiatives across all properties, including CMT, CMT.com, CMT Mobile, games, touring and other businesses), is a reader of this newsletter, and the author of the book which provides a songwriting compass, Futurehit.DNA. Jay stands at the forefront of the new music industry with his theories on the elements of a hit song and Futurehit.DNA is a must read for all songwriters everywhere.
Now artists have the opportunity to put the ideas Jay describes in Futurehit.DNA to music as part of the Futurehit.DNA Songwriting Challenge. Jay will give three top-notch submissions featured placement on his blog, futurehitdna.com and his social networks. One Grand Prize winner will receive a career-changing opportunity to receive an hour-long consultation with Jay on what makes their tune hit-worthy and what next steps are appropriate. Entries for this unique contest are available until October 1st.
"People don't listen to music the same way anymore," says Frank, "and they certainly don't discover music the same way anymore... If artists aren't going to pay attention to that, then they are going to lose out on the key methodology that people utilize to find your music. You have to play into the way technology works by saying to yourself, 'How do I listen to this when it comes through on that technology? How does it sound when it first comes in that way?' Those are the artists that are going to succeed moving forward."
To get your copy of Futurehit.DNA or submit songs to Jay for consideration, please go to www.futurehitdna.com.
And Now For Some News ...
More On Google's Coming Music Store And Service
WIRED.COMI wrote my commentary about the music world getting Googled last week in the newsletter. Now details about the store and service are starting to leak out. Check out the early news ... something's in the clouds.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Global Digital Music Markets Will Increase To $32.5 Billion By 2014
IE MARKETRESEARCH.COMThere are now 832 million paid users of digital music worldwide and that number is expected to almost double to 1.555 billion in 2014, and lead to an increase in global revenues.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Android Is Now Number 2 And Rising Fast
MEDIAPOST - AROUND THE NET IN ONLINE MEDIAOn the heels of Apple announcing its kinder, gentler developer guidelines for its app store, comes a reminder of one of the elements that forced Apple's hand: Per A Gartner Report, Google's Android OS is poised to become the second-biggest mobile platform worldwide sometime this year, vaulting past Research In Motion's BlackBerry at a blistering pace.
"According to Gartner, Android had just 3.9% of the market in 2009, less than a third of Apple's share. For 2010, that number will be up to 17.7%, edging out the sinking BlackBerry for second place," reports Silicon Valley Insider. And though SIA admits its surprising how fast Google has moved up, it says, "It's been clear that this was coming for some time now."
It also seems increasingly apparent that Android will be the platform of choice only for smartphones. Since the OS is open source it's already been used to power tablet devices (among other things), but Google says Froyo (Android 2.2) is not optimized for tablets. "There are currently several Android-based tablets in the works, including those from LG, Lenovo, and Samsung," writes PC Mag. "Google, meanwhile, is working on its Chrome operating system, though it plans to release Chrome OS-based netbooks before tablets."
Read more about it by clicking here.
Hits Without Radio, Radio Without Hits
INSIDE MUSIC MEDIA.COMGreat article this week by Jerry Del Colliano about two examples of what happens when an artist decides to market without radio airplay, while another tries to get airplay she believes she deserves based on Billboard progress.
A timely article, and one that provides some great insights about how fast peoples' "listening" habits have changed.
Read more about it by clicking here.
The New iPod Nano
MEDIAPOST - MOBILE INSIDERSeveral years ago, "Saturday Night Live"'s Fred Armisen did a Steve Jobs send-up involving ridiculously minute iPods, culminating in the "iPod Invisa": too small to actually see, but when you drop it, it floats. We are almost there.
Here's an update on Apple's new iPod Nano, a most daring entry in this latest round of product releases.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Report Sez Only Two-Thirds Of Cell Users That Have Apps Use Them
MEDIAPOST - MOBILE INSIDERAbout four in 10 adult mobile users have apps on their phones, but only two-thirds (68%) actually use them, according to a new report by the Pew Internet Project.
Using apps is still not among the most popular mobile data activities, with only 29% of mobile subscribers having downloaded an app.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Musopen Raises $40,000 So Far To Set Classical Music "Free"
ARS TECHNICAMusopen is an online library of copyright-free, public domain musical works.
So far raised they have over $41,000 on crowdsourced fundraising platform Kickstarter for their plan to hire orchestras to record new performances of classic works. Their version of "freedom" looks little like Napster. Instead of distributing a recording without permission, they raise money, hire orchestras to record terrific classical music that has fallen into the public domain, and then makes those recordings available to anyone, for any reason.
Read more about it by clicking here.
IE 9 Is Almost Here, The Killers Like It
CNET.COMMicrosoft already has many people talking about the next version on Internet Explorer, IE 9, which is scheduled to launch very soon. (Expect beta versions to leak any minute)
Among those talking about IE 9 and its improvements was the rock band The Killers, which has a new HTML 5-based website that screams in Microsoft's latest browser. (But the Killers haven't always been such big fans of Redmond's work)
Read more about it by clicking here.
Why Hollywood Should Fear Netflix
THE WRAPHollywood should be afraid. Very afraid.
Hollywood should be worried about the changes that Netflix's business represents. A number of analysts and even industry members believe its streaming business, coupled with the growth of video-on-demand services like Hulu, could represent a shot across the bow of the paid-television industry.
"The more consumers find they can get more of the programming they want to watch at a reduced monthly cost, the more consumers are going to disconnect their cable and satellite," one industry executive told TheWrap.
Read more about it by clicking here.
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR MOVIE CAREER TANKS:
Well, J-Lo is going to be a judge on "American Idol" after all and she will earn a reported $12 million a year to do so. I wonder what Steven Tyler thought when he heard the news. After all, he'll be sitting next to her as a judge on this show for this coming season. J-Lo, Tyler, Randy Jackson. We're definitely gonna' miss Simon.
IT'S BING IN 2ND PLACE, YAHOO TO SHOW:
Marking the end of an era, Microsoft's Bing has passed Yahoo to become the number-two search engine in the U.S., Nielsen is reporting.
VID AWARDS GO GAGA:
Lady GaGa captured eight MTV Video awards this year at show broadcast last week. Eight awards but she didn't perform. Then again, it would be hard to in the meat dress she was wearing. And in more GaGa news, according to the new edition of the Guinness Book Of World Records, GaGa is now the most-searched female on the Internet.
MORE JIMI:
Unreleased songs, alternate takes, rare live recordings and Jimi Hendrix's early work as a session musician will all be unearthed for the upcoming four-disc box set, "West Coast Seattle Boy: The Jimi Hendrix Anthology," scheduled for release November 16th.
CAN TOUCH THIS:
TouchTunes, the company that owns the digital jukeboxes found in many bars, has created an iPhone app to go along with its social music site, MyTouchTunes.
STOP, HEY, WHAT'S THAT SOUND:
Buffalo Springfield are reforming for their first concert in 42 years, happening at this year's Bridge School Benefit in Mountain View, CA on October 23rd and October 24th. Original members Neil Young, Stephen Stills and Richie Furay will perform. (Original bassist Bruce Palmer died in 2004; the band's first drummer, Dewey Martin, died last year.)
SETTLED:
Rob Fusari, Lady Gaga's former producer (and boyfriend), who claimed he came up with the name "Lady Gaga," has dropped his $30 million lawsuit against the singer. Fusari, a co-writer on "Paparazzi," claimed Gaga cheated him out of royalties after the pair ended their relationship in 2008. Gaga also dropped her countersuit against Fusari. It's unclear whether a settlement was made.
DEATH CAB MEMBERS FOR ZEPPELIN TRIBUTE:
Death Cab for Cutie's Chris Walla and M. Ward are among the indie rockers that will appear on the upcoming double-disc tribute "From The Land of Ice And Snow: The Songs of Led Zeppelin," due out October 9th.
UNEARTHED:
Ray Charles and Johnny Cash's duet of "Why Me, Lord?" will be featured on the upcoming Charles rarities collection "Rare Genius: The Undiscovered Masters," out on October 26th.
PASSING:
Irwin Sibler, who as editor of the folk magazine Sing Out! wrote an open letter to Bob Dylan criticizing his move to use electric guitars at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, passed away September 8th at the age of 84
The Music Industry Past, Present & Future, And The Internet I answer questions on EconTalk
I did an interview about the industry and the Internet at EconTalk with host Russ Roberts. Russ is also a professor of economics at George Mason University, blogs at Cafe Hayek, and has written three novels that teach economics. He's also the co-creator of the Keynes-Hayek rap video. (And if your understanding of the economic meltdown that occurred needs to be enlightened, this video will do it)
In the interview we talk about the evolution of the music industry, the impact of the digital revolution, and I give my reasons for believing in the virtues and potential of the Internet in enhancing the music industry. I point out, as I have many times here in the newsletter, that the internet allows numerous artists to make money from their music and it can enhance revenues from live performances by expanding an artist's base. We also discuss the challenges facing record companies and I suggest that the full potential of the Internet as a distribution channel has yet to be fully exploited. There's a lot of ground covered, but based on the comments already posted of those who have tuned in, they've enjoyed it.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Quotes of the week
"You seem to be acting like a Lindsay Lohan wannabe. Going through life rude, profane, obnoxious and self-indulgent is not the way you want to go through life."
-- Presiding Judge Damian Murray to Jersey Shore star Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi on her recent disorderly conduct arrest, at her court appearance. Actually, Judge, that probably is the way she wants to go through life. Once this show ends, she's just another fat obnoxious nobody."Ladies we have to keep those implants soft."
-- Heidi Montag, on massaging her augmented bosom, on Twitter. And that qualifies as this week's blonde joke.
The B-Side - 'Blips'
THE ONION (www.theonion.com) STORY OF THE WEEK:
Guy Carrying Guitar Case On Elevator Envied By Everyone On Elevator, Imagines Guy
NEW YORK-A guy carrying a guitar case on a midtown Manhattan elevator was envied and admired by fellow passengers during the entirety of his 14-floor ride, the guitar-case- carrying man imagined Monday.
"These people would kill to be me," the man thought in reference to the well-dressed professionals standing next to him in the elevator. "They see me, this guitar case, my sunglasses, my worn-out jeans, and think, 'Man, here's a guy who didn't sell out and become part of the corporate mainstream.'"
"This poor suit over here with the red tie definitely wants to be me," the guitar-case-carrying man continued in his mind. "From the moment we got on this thing he's been dying to ask me what the life of a musician is like."
According to the man's imagination, his fellow elevator passengers were envious of either his free-wheeling lifestyle; his gutsy decision to follow his dreams-money and so-called success be damned; or the fact that he doesn't give a f*** about shaving and hasn't done so regularly for the past 10 years.
Read the rest here and laugh: Click Here.
The Blogs
Check out Jerry Del Colliano's (the founder of INSIDE RADIO) daily blog, by clicking here: http://www.insidemusicmedia.blogspot.comWebsite
Check out attorney Ray Beckerman's website at: http://recordingindustryvspeople.blogspot.com where he prints news about the RIAA's ongoing activities
TinyURL
Check out www.tinyurl.com where you can make a smaller URL that will work for any webpage you wish to link to or reference. (As you can see, I'm using it in my news stories above!)
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