Online Piracy's Future

I came across this great article about online piracy and how it is shaping the future of online entertainment. The battle between the entertainment industry and consumers has been going on for years and yet, only has a slight end in sight. According to the article, 70% of 18 – 29 year olds still download unauthorized music, TV shows or movies, compared with 46% of all adults who’d done the same. With those wide of margins, what can be done to change peoples’ minds about doing the right thing?

Fingers are being pointed at both sides for not trying to nip this problem from the get go. Law enforcement has handed down penalties ranging from fines to jail time, yet the piracy has continued. However, Apple has proven that if you charge a minimal fee, the consumer can download as much as they want without fear of penalty and they are more then willing to do so.

I’ll admit, when Napster first came out, I was all over that site, getting all the music I could get my hands on. The one thing I loved about it was that the whole experience allowed me to try out music that I otherwise would have never given a chance at. Napster allowed me to broaden my musical palette while at the same time, finding older music from some of my favorite artists. I never gave a second thought that what I was doing was illegal. I just thought that it was a great way for unknown artists to finally get their chance to be in the spotlight.

I believe that if more of the entertainment industry were to follow Apple’s business model for online downloading, they would see a great decline in the amount of illegal activity. Sure there are going to be some people that will still try to get it all for free but the majority of the population, in my opinion, would much rather go the legitimate way. When you download illegally, you have to go to sketchy sites that more then likely will give your computer a virus. However, when you download from iTunes, you know that what you are getting will not come with an extra present. So the consumer gets peace of mind on two fronts; their downloading is completely legal and that it isn’t going to have any detrimental effects on their computer.

The Artist Manager's Most Important Role

As I was searching around on the web for some inspirational aspects on artist management, I came across a really good video from Berklee Music’s instructor George Howard. Here, he interviews the former manager of the multi-platinum band Boston, Jeff Dorenfeld.

Mr. Dorenfeld talks about how a manager and artist need to have complete trust in one another in order for their relationship to be fulfilling and prosperous. He also talks about how it’s important for the artist to have a vision of where they want to go, whether that be artistic or financial success or whatever, they need to have a goal so that the manager has an idea of what they need to be aimed at.

Since the band is focusing on the artistic side, the manager is focused on the business side. They guide the band in a way that will make both successful but both opinions need to be accepted. If the band says they don’t want to work with this producer or agent, the manager should respect that choice and vice versa. I liked Mr. Dorenfeld’s analogy of the artist and manager’s relationship being like a marriage. Both parties’ values have to align and it doesn’t take much for either party to lose faith in the other if there isn’t constant communication and trust.

What I liked about this video is that it resonates a lot with my beliefs of how a manager should interact with his clients. A manager needs to handle the business aspects so the artist can concentrate on their work. When the artist starts trying to do both, they loose sight of what got them where they are and it begins to reflect in their work. They begin to see things that aren’t really there or they completely loose sight of what they want because they are too focused on trying to balance everything. I believe that the artist needs to be free of all stress that relates to anything business. Granted, they need to be informed of what is going on and without that trust between them and the manager, they won’t have that freedom. They need to see, believe and understand that the manager is completely on their side, otherwise, neither will get anywhere and something that could have been very beneficial is now ruined.