The music industry as a whole has seen some interesting developments over the past few months. The surge of free music downloads – of both the legal and illegal variety – combined with the death knell for CD sales across the world. Business such as We7 have offered unparalleled access to free music downloads supported – at least in theory – by advertising. That Sony has lent its support to the We7 venture is testament enough to the sweeping changes that have occurred.
Free music has always been a fact of life whether publishers and industry leaders wanted to accept it. It is those industry leaders that have managed to find a way to work with free music downloads and move – progress – into the future that will find success. There are just as many, though, that spurn the coming of free music downloads; it is these companies that will get left behind.
A number of examples of music creators realizing – and embracing – the inevitable future were led initially by Radiohead’s headline grabbing release of their ‘In Rainbows’ album for free (or at least for ‘as much as you want to pay for it’). Others have followed in these footsteps and have received favorable recognition as a result.
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