Will the Apple Tablet Revolutionize Music Again?
The big news yesterday was that Apple is expected to launch a tablet-sized computer this Fall. Besides playing your iTunes movies on a 10-inch screen the device will be competing with Sony and Amazon for a share of the eBook market.
The Financial Times reported that Apple was working closely with music labels to develop an interactive music booklet.
“The entertainment industry is hoping that Apple, which revolutionised the markets for music players and for phones, can do it again. “It’s a portable entertainment device,” said one entertainment executive. “It’s going to be fabulous for watching movies.”
Recording industry executives said Apple planned to use the larger screen to offer new services such as interactive booklets and liner notes that come along with purchases of entire music CDs.”
The article continues and says “While iTunes moved legal sales of digitised music into the mainstream, the digital take-up for full CDs has disappointed the industry. Consumers usually select just one or two tracks.”
The consumer only selects a few tracks, is that a surprise? While I embrace Apple launching a tablet-sized device I am a bit weary if it’s primary uses are to be as a video player, eBook reader and music device.
The music industry should really look in the mirror, sales have eroded because they chose not to embrace the digital revolution, not to mention most albums are a vehicle for a single nowadays. For years the music industry forced the consumer to purchase a complete album. (Except for the occasional CD and tape singles and 45′s back in the day.)
Do they really believe everyone was purchasing the album for all the songs? Now that the consumer has a choice they are worried about lost revenue when they should really be worrying about the quality of the albums.
Steve Jobs doesn’t swing and miss, so I hope the tablet is everything it could be and more. If so, I’ll likely be in line on launch day.
2 Comments
jay sanders
July 29, 2009greetings, mr. jenders –
some of us actually like cds. (actually, some of us still like records.)
singles on their own get old fast. listening to them in the context of a carefully plotted cd gives them more staying power. not to mention giving you the chance to discover the songs that don’t catch on til you’ve heard them three of four times. those usually wind up being the ones that stick with you. and they’re the ones you’d miss if you were just buying singles.
so any new magical device that encourages people to actually buy a complete cd is fine by me.
js
djenders
August 4, 2009Mr. Jay Sanders -
Very nice to see your comment and know that you are reading the blog. I agree with you, and I personally subscribe to the idea of owning records as well. I think some of it is based on the nostalgia, but I also just enjoy the audio much more.
And you make a great point, experiencing a full album lets you hear the song in a different context and discover new songs.
Great points, and I hope an Apple Tablet reinvigorates everyone to appreciate albums. However, I hope the record companies take notice and start cultivating more than one-hit wonders.