The digital music system is a great idea, don't get me wrong. The problem is it's easy to spread free copies of a song or album with a click of a mouse, that's the problem (unauthorized reproduction). If digital copies were selling as much as the physical copies at the peak of the CD industry (90's/early 2000s), there wouldn't be a problem I think because there are no physical inventories to hold on to if they didn't sell. With digital everything sold has no physical copy, if it sells great, if not, there would be extra inventories for labels, distributors, record stores (do they still exist?) to hold on to which sometimes are either given for free (aka the bargain bins). I wonder if music should follow the same model as the movie industry (if it doesn't already do so) where the music is only available at 1 central outlet (with movies it's the cinema theatre), which is why the movies can still earn blockbuster status during opening week etc. (unless it bombs!). Then again, some people wait for a month til a bootlegged copy comes out. I guess with music once someone has a copy it can easily be spread in various digital outlets. I thought with the Napster lawsuit that had been settled and figured out already?
lol I'm sure record stores still exist. just wish I could walk into one and say "hey can I put up a QR code poster in your store of my music"? that's be so cool. but wow that's it! making copies of music is super easy. there are even apps that let you burn stuff off youtube for crying out loud. try to bootleg a movie. it's a hassle because of how huge the file is, sites like youtube ban you if you upload a movie that they probably have to view in google play, and if you're like me you want to see the movie in full view. people still do bootlegs??? SMH. going back to google play, how strange that they''' let anyone upload someone else's music that they have in google play but won't let you upload a movie. I really don't get it.
There was a time when physical CDs were available at 1 central location (record stores) and every new album came out on a Tuesday (?), which I think "centralizes" music where and when it is available and not spread out available at a grocery store, etc. Kinda like pay per view is only available as pay per view, which is why PPV do well enough. I think when MTV started showing less music videos, the "centralizing" of music video kinda went out of whack IMO. Same goes with music, it isn't centralized the way movies still are.