The Road Map Of The Digital Download

Digital downloading has made adding to your music collection so simplistic. You hear a song you like in a movie, wait until the movie is over to see the credits, look up the artist online, and then start downloading. No more writing song titles and artists on napkins so that you can remember what to look for next time you go to Best Buy, even though you know by the time you make it to Best Buy, the napkin will be long gone. The question is, where do you get your downloads from? 10,000 lawsuits went into affect in 2006 in over 18 countries regarding illegal downloading from peer to peer networks. Supposedly this has deterred illegal downloaders, although according to the IFPI the same percentage of portable device owners purchased music downloads (14%) as received music downloads through peer-to-peer networks and free websites. Of those who purchased music, iTunes and services that allow you to pay per song seem to rank at the top for most frequently used. Other competing services work through subscription services, ad supported services, and video sites like YouTube or MySpace.

With all of the convenience of the digital download, the hype should only continue to increase. The introduction of phones like the iPhone will help to fuel downloading. IFPI Chairman and CEO John Kennedy was quoted stating that in 2010 at least one quarter of all music sales internationally will be from digital downloads.

Digital downloads do seem to be dominating the music market, but there is still the question of how to prevent illegal downloading, or whether it should be prevented. Free music downloads are a good way to promote an upcoming artist, since many customers will not want to pay for songs from an artist they are unfamiliar with. The 30-second clips of songs from iTunes do not always catch the attention of the listener. Sometimes it even takes several times listening to a song to really begin to like it. People would be willing to try more music if it was free. This would save on advertising for record labels. The record labels could then focus more on making money from merchandising and concerts. If more people are familiar with an artist through free music downloads and artist recommendations from downloading sites, then people are more likely to spread the word about an artist. They are also more likely to buy concert tickets, or products that the artist supports. It would be a shame to let money stand in the way of developing a larger fan base, especially among younger generations who may not be willing to pay per song. Because of this, it will always be difficult to prevent illegal downloading, and someone will always come up with a way to break any security measures taken to stop illegal downloading. The money used to prevent illegal downloading should be put to better, more profitable uses.

If free digital downloads are too much to ask, there should at least be a better incentive for people who legally download. The idea of fans selling music to one another would benefit the most parties involved. Peer recommendation sites and sharing services would be used to find songs to purchase. The customer would get the song he or she wants (hopefully at a price less than iTunes or other downloading stores), the fan selling music would get a percentage of the money paid for his or her song, and the record label would probably get a cut of the money. Another way would be a flat monthly rate, so although customers pay still, they can at least have an unlimited amount of downloads. This way, customers are still urged to search out new artists.