| Series |
Critical perspectives on music and society
Critical perspectives on music and society. ^A1439102
|
| Contents |
Part I. Transformations in the recording industry. Recording industry in transition ; The expansion of consumption in the recording industry -- Part II. The state in music. Copyright: a critical exploration ; Critical junctures -- Part III. The recording industry and labor. Musician labor ; Victims, musicians, and Metallica -- Part IV. Digital distribution and surveillance. Distribution then and now ; Watching music consumption -- Conclusion. |
| Abstract |
The second edition of this book sheds light on the way large corporations appropriate new technology to maintain their market dominance in a capitalist system. To date, scholars have erroneously argued that digital music has diminished the power of major record labels. In the book, the author suggests otherwise, adopting a broader perspective on the entire issue by examining how the recording industry strengthened copyright laws for their private ends at the expense of the broader public good. He also challenges the dominant discourse on digital music distribution, which assumes that the recording industry has a legitimate claim to profitability at the expense of a shared culture. The author specifically surveys the actual material effects that digital distribution has had on the industry. Most notable among these is how major record labels find themselves in a stronger financial position today in the music industry than they were before the launch of Napster, largely because of reduced production and distribution costs and the steady gain in digital music sales. Moreover, instead of merely trying to counteract the phenomenon of digital distribution, the RIAA and the major record labels embraced and then altered the distribution system. |
| General note | Previous edition: Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2015. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references (pages 161-174) and index. |
| ISBN | 9781793623003 (hbk.) |
| ISBN | 1793623007 (hbk.) |
| ISBN | (ePub ebook) |
