Compositions

The music industry adopted digital media long before any other industry
with the introduction of the synthesizer in 1960. With the introduction
of the synthesizer, the way music was composed written and produced
and also performed was revolutionized. When the CD was first introduced
by Sony and Phillips in the 1980's, this became the most popular storage
for digital media to be distributed and recorded on. For many years almost
everyone in the entertainment industry has realized that there is a vibrant,
emerging market in digital media. The introduction of the internet has seen
many forms of media in digital format being shared worldwide from the
networks that major distributors as an attempt to promote and sell media
with the click of a button. Although this easy and efficient way of
communication the internet has also been the central focal point of
illegal file sharing from torrents. Tens of millions of people have probably
downloaded copyrighted content through peer-to-peer networks.
The pay per download and subscription services offer the chance to own
music with greater flexibility than traditional media, with the option of
being able to download individual songs rather than paying for an entire
album etc. Apple's i-Tunes was a major success because it was the first
media centre that allowed a user to buy songs through the internet for
no subscription fee. Released in 2003, i-Tunes sold almost 2 million songs
in the first two weeks of being launched and generated nearly 70 million
downloads in the first year. Recently we have witnessed the emergence
of 'Spotify'. This digital service offers the user to listen to music for free
but at the same time, the free subscription offers listeners mass amounts
of advertisement for the entertainment company, but if you upgrade by
paying a subscription the companies make money from subscription and
advertisement interruptions stop. These media software applications help
to stop combat the piracy and illegal downloads that are slowly
destroying the music industry. The digital format has promised us pristine
sound quality that is easily accessible and is becoming larger every year.