So long are the days of record players and CD collections, Tape cassettes, and vinyl. We have entered the digital age where faster is better and online streaming is the only market demand. Because technology is consistently evolving so is the music industry. Over time technology has brought about some of the advancements and changes that gave us the capabilities we have today.
But where did it all begin?
The music industry really began in 1877 when Thomas Edison invented the phonogram, the first recording technology. Time passed to where a simple tinfoil disk turned into a vinyl one. The vinyl soon evolved into a tape cassette which with the Walkman was the first portable listening device (besides a radio).
This new portable was a small glimpse of the freedom one could receive in the future. The CD soon arrived a bit later along with the portable CD player and the historic BOOM BOX.
The emergence of the internet…
The media technology prior to the emergence of the internet were fairly easy to understand and regulate. Yet overnight one night in 1999 a peer-to-peer sharing service called Napster overtook the music industry. Lawsuits were filed because the music industry was arguing that the music was being shared with others instead of being purchased.
Despite the minor setback from the lawsuit Napster was the beginning of the streaming era. Since that time record companies have signed contracts with streaming services to allow subscribers to access content anywhere and on any smart device.
With the digital age creating a quicker pace of life we are living in a way where everything we need is right at our fingertips. Smart device based companies have allowed for the music industry to become and on-demand industry. It has created free and paid streaming applications like iTunes and Spotify to allow for “easy and convenient listening.”
But this leads me to a closing question with this easy access to an incredible amount of music on one streaming service are the artist and industry losing or making money?
Sources :
Evolution of the Music Industry //Vivian //Napster //Technology and Media Consumption
Media and Entertainment 
This was a really interesting article. I have been thinking a lot about how much music has changed over time. It seems like when we were younger, CD’s were the popular thing. I still have probably hundreds of CD’s of all my favorite artists that are laying around in my attic. I particularly enjoyed being able to see where how the technologies evolved regarding music. I also liked reading about Napster, which was before my time of Internet-streaming music. I had no idea about the lawsuit, but quite frankly it makes sense that it happened. And today, Spotify and iTunes are the popular apps to find music with. People all over the world love being able to have music whenever and wherever they go. However, there is a problem of people illegally downloading music without paying for it. This could cause for artists to lose money, and some have started to stand up against it. I know Taylor Swift was one artist who took her music off of sites/apps that did not pay her a proper amount. I would definitely like to dive more into this, it is a very interesting topic!
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