2. The big four have all the major control over
the music industry. They have the most
access to expertise and capital to market,
influence on airplay and are most able to fill
shelf space in major record retailers.
3. Before the rise of web 2/3.0, the big four had
all the power on terms of what was made and
what was played and what was successful.
However, with growing apps like Spotify and
other online websites like YouTube and
Soudcloud, they have taken the music
industry by storm and made it so much easier
for unsigned artists to be discovered.
4. Independent artists can produce and distribute
their work a lot easier without the support of
big corporate business, making niche artists
who may not have been signed by record
companies have a platform for their music to
be heard. The fact that there is no binding
contract to many artists in the present day
means they are a lot more free to do or say
what they want to on social media as well as
being able to communicate easily with their
audiences.
5. The way that music is now distributed has also
made it easier for independent musicians to get
their music to audiences. The fact that the most
common means of distribution in terms of music
went from records, to CDs and we now most
commonly consume new music in the format of
mp3. This makes distribution much cheaper for
the artist but also makes access to the music for
the audience become a lot easier as most people
either download music to their mobile phone or
iPod.
6. Marketing has become much cheaper due to web
2/3.0. Word of mouth has become much more
than just what is meant in a literal sense. The
internet has become a huge part of the way an
artist is marketed. An example of this could be if
a person heard a song on YouTube and really
liked it, they are now able to share that song on
twitter for example and the people that follow
them may be more inclined to listen to that artist
because of the common ground they share with
the said person who shared the video. This
process is known as viral marketing.
