LiveMusicBlog

To get an idea of where Web music is headed it is necessary to understand the history. Let’s think back to the time when music downloads 1st became popular. For me it was spurred in the early Napster days. Everyone was out there going crazy grabbing any and all music they may find in the absence of consequence. Then the RIAA came along and said “wait guys that’s our copyrighted content you are downloading.” Since that time the RIAA has been fighting an uphill battle to end copyright infringement.
After the early days of Napster and peer to peer file sharing a new crop of websites popped up offer ing legal music downloads. Even Napster went legit signing deals with major labels to offer unlimited access to their offer ings. In order to make this a reality the record industry had to come up with a way to protect their investment.
Along came digital rights management ( Digital Rights Management ). New Digital Rights Management technologies have been used to limit access to media. In essence as long as you are subscribed to Rhapsody for example you may download and listen to as many tunes as you like. You may even performance them on your mp3 player (excluding iPod and Zune). The Digital Rights Management kicks in by restricting the number of devices you have access from and cutting access completely when you end the subscription.
In addition,  businesses chose to run their personal brand of Digital Rights Management. This means that if you own an iPod or Zune player your options are decidedly restricted. Apple and Microsoft do their perfect to force you into using iTunes and Zune Marketplace.
Over the final couple years things have vary d quite a bit. Web stores including Amazon and Wal-Mart signed deals with the major labels to sell Digital Rights Management free song downloads. They key here is that you are paying a cost for each MP3 song you download but get the music in the absence of Digital Rights Management restrictions. Even iTunes has started offer ing Digital Rights Management free downloads.
Still another challenge that faces Web media businesses is the ISP’s battle to lower network traffic and thus lower congestion during peak times. The lack of network infrastructure, particularly in the US, is a ample concern. Throttling traffic or charging customers for metered access as Comcast and Time Warner are currently testing may drive away customers.  all of us  no longer live in a world of text email and static Web pages. websites now offer rich content including streaming audio and video, social integration and an interactive  set ting for individuals to gather just as you would at your local/regional watering hole. Hopefully customers will voice their concerns and ISP’s will in turn expand their network infrastructures to allow for our ever growing bandwidth needs.
So where does this leave us? I recall mentioning excitement about the future of Web downloads prior to my rants. Web music websites are looking ahead to the future. With the ability to download tunes to PC, cellular phone  or other web-enabled devices you’ll have access to the latest tunes from anywhere at whenever. websites like eMusic, Amazon MP3 and Wal-Mart Music have shown that the Digital Rights Management free music is the way of the future. The next step will be to figure a way for websites like Rhapsody and Napster to offer unlimited access to Digital Rights Management free music for a monthly subscription fee. I’ll be the 1st to admit that this is no simple task but one that may prove decidedly profitable to the music industry in this ever growing digital age.
The excitement extends beyond music as businesses like Netflix offer a large selection of movie downloads free to subscribers. We’re not talking about just watching on your PC either. With a  set top box you may download films to watch directly on your television. Industry experts predict that within several years you won’t run to your local/regional video store to rent the latest DVD movies. Instead you’ll simply watch them whenever on demand via download. Alright so I may hear some of you saying yeah but how long do the movies take to download? I may tell you that with Netflix I may start watching about 30 seconds following the download begins. The rest of the movie downloads while I am enjoying the film.
In conclusion the future of Web media is shining bright. Customer’s spend ing habits may endorse record labels and ISP’s accept that the future of music and movies is Web rather than in record and video stores. The instant gratification of having access to millions of tunes or thinking of a movie and watching it a minute later is enough to make me want to cease typing. So sit back, relax and enjoy what the future has in store.