I am concerned that the music licensing/compensation issue has created a polarized debate, but I don’t see a lot of discussion of how to fix the model. I think we all agree musicians (and producers and engineers, for that matter) should be fairly compensated for creating music. We also all agree that there is an increasing amount of music available to consumers for cheap or free, and that is unlikely to change. How do we reconcile these conflicting ideas? Because my business background is in software marketing, I always see things in terms of the opportunities created by technology advancements, bounded by the disorganized nature of the marketplace, especially in new or changing businesses. The music industry is certainly in flux – both in terms of production and compensation. That makes it both frustrating and exhilarating.
One thing I find interesting is how the opinion of the musicians (producers) differs from that of music consumers, and also from that of industry commentators (who are not creating music themselves, but make money indirectly from musicians and the creation of music.). We all have different points of view because they are informed by where we make our living. I think there is money to be made in nascent and confused markets, more than in organized ones, and that factor, to some extent, is preventing a model that is more streamlined and thus fairer to the musician/producer.
By bringing down barriers to both the creation and sharing of art, technology advances have resulted in the exponential growth of the number of hobbyist artists creating and distributing art for their own satisfaction and self-expression. This is true not only in music but also in publishing of the written word, movie-making, and photography. Along with some really awesome artistic content, there is also a lot of crap out there. But… everyone’ can be an artist, right? Art is all subjective, isn’t it? Isn’t it just a mater of visibility, rising above the noise? Just find your niche, and you will find someone who will pay for your art…. right? This is the perspective that daily keeps me from quitting making music.
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