Happenings in the music industry seem to mirror what happens in the publishing industry, for better or worse. The following link leads to an interesting NYT article about the hopes being pinned on some album releases.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/07/opinion/07tues4.html?th&emc=th
I especially like the following passage. For "music", insert "publishing". Books/readers/authors etc...
"The music industry loves to blame its problems on digital piracy, a case that has yet to be fully proved. The real problem is an addiction to blockbusters, and that is what today is all about - feeding the monster this industry has become. These days there are more musicians and bands than there have ever been, and there are still plenty of music-buying fans. Together, they are discovering alternative means of connecting with each other.
The big record companies continue to insist that the only route to profitability is blockbuster sales of a few titles, and the result is all too predictable - music that matters more for how it sells than how it sounds."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/07/opinion/07tues4.html?th&emc=th
I especially like the following passage. For "music", insert "publishing". Books/readers/authors etc...
"The music industry loves to blame its problems on digital piracy, a case that has yet to be fully proved. The real problem is an addiction to blockbusters, and that is what today is all about - feeding the monster this industry has become. These days there are more musicians and bands than there have ever been, and there are still plenty of music-buying fans. Together, they are discovering alternative means of connecting with each other.
The big record companies continue to insist that the only route to profitability is blockbuster sales of a few titles, and the result is all too predictable - music that matters more for how it sells than how it sounds."