How digital media has changed the music industry.

Before digital media came along and everything was still analog, people used to use tape and/or vinyl records to record music. After the music was recorded it would have to be mastered by several types of hardware such as equalizers and compressors. Once finished, it would have to be distributed through the mail to radio stations for airplay. After playing on the radio, the major distribution companies would send the tape or record, and soon the CD, to what are known as brick-and-mortar establishments. This is basically a term used for retailers such as F.Y.E., Wal-Mart, Target, etc. that would put the music on their shelves for the consumer to purchase. The good thing about this was that it was easier to control the unlawful replication of an artist's product as well as keep track of how many people were buying the music. Some of the drawbacks the this method were that it was more expensive to the record labels and it took weeks if not months to get something on the shelf for sale. After the digital age started coming around the first thing that changed was the way music was recorded. It could now be recorded digitally and mastered within a digital domain without a lot of wasted tape or other material. The next thing that changed was the way music was shared and distributed. The computer would now make it possible for music to be shared almost instantly after it was completed. It also make it possible for anyone with access to a computer to broadcast their own music to millions without having to have major distribution which allowed for a wider reach with less effort or wasted money. the only problem with this new ability is that it makes it harder for companies to keep track of how many people are buying their product due to music being able to be shared with multiple people for free. Music that is downloaded without being paid for also takes money away form the artist which makes live performances so important. S lot of the money that music artists are receiving comes form concerts and appearances rather than direct music sales. Another issue arising form the digital media age is that a lot of traditional brick-and-mortar outlets are having steadily decreasing sales with some of them having to close or sell out to bigger name national chains. This has led to an increase in the amount of online stores that offer music for downloading by purchasing either a membership to the company or paying a one-time fee that occurs per download. Some of the pros to this kind of distribution are that music can still be tracked to see how much is being purchased and the artist can still get paid for their product. This is very important because music is registered with a company called Soundscan which tracks music sales and helps determine if an album hits certain levels such as gold or platinum.