Typical music consumers who were old enough to go out to the store and cop an album in the early 2000's likely didn't, thanks to peer-to-peer file sharing programs like Napster and Limewire, that gave someone who already had what you wanted, to make it available to you for free. It was a glorious time for music listeners but it pit them at odds with artists, who were naturally adverse to not being compensated for their work. They initially fought the popular practice in tandem with the most powerful players of the industry machine and it cost them exorbitant amounts of money in what was a losing battle. All the while, there were those in tech who could see ahead of the curve.
While the likes of Jimmy Iovine saw piracy and lawlessness in P2P file sharing, the Steve Jobs' of the world were able to project that streaming was the wave of the future. Thus came Jobs' innovation of iTunes and the iPod, through which he'd help the industry survive and take control over their product again. The industry would even fight jobs, as giving up the traditional revenue numbers made off of physical albums was a tough pill to swallow. But there really was no other choice. Labels were forced to get down or lay down.
For Iovine, who headed industry dynamo Interscope Records at the time, a poignant perspective on the matter began to crystallize. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em; you don't fight technology. In an interview with Pharrell and Scott Vener on Beats 1 radio's OTHERTone podcast, he recalls his chance meeting with Jobs being the moment he was inspired to shift course. In hindsight, there would be no Beats by Dre, which Iovine helped roll out, without Steve Jobs and his willingness to embrace a paradigm shift.
Iovine says he is now done with being an administrator in the old relic the industry has become. The music business is way too fluid these days, and it is in the hands of the artists in a manner it never has been before. While a rapper or singer may not make as much per unit as they once did, their ability to bear ownership over their work and to flesh it out through a world of digital avenues has cut out the middleman, he explains. And he now looks toward focusing on how he can help steer the course through technology.
Source: hotnewhiphop.com
