Throughout the years technology has drastically changed the way people listened to music. At one point in time people could only listen music on the radio. Then vinyl came out along with the player. 8-tracks, cassettes and CDs were to follow. But now they are in the digital form of MP3s. This change not only affects consumers but it also affects businesses.
Retailers such as Best Buy, have drastically downsized their selection of music. I went to purchase a CD the day the album was released and they did not have it. They didn’t even have the artist listed on the shelves. Places like Wal-Mart are lowering the prices of all CDs. They not only have a five-dollar movie bin but five-dollar CD bin as well. They will do anything to get the consumers to buy the products.
The switch to online sales can also leave businesses confused. They still have to pay the record companies all the rights and royalties for every album they sell. The business needs to watch and record the sales of the digital media. Complications begin to arise when tracks are sold separately. The company has to make sure that everyone gets their share of the profit.
The process of sales reporting can be complex with all the different packaging models of the digital music. But by automating the system it will make the process go a lot smoother. It will also benefit the retailers and record labels. There is a program that can list the transactions using product, date and price that the item is sold. This system can better ensure that everyone gets the royalties.
The technology is growing to help more people use digital media as their main source of entertainment. This is making the physical CDs become obsolete. Will they ever really go away?
No comments:
Post a Comment