Vinyl Records, Cassette Tapes, CDs, MP3s, Online Streaming, which digital age of music were or are you a part of? All of them or just a few? The way music lovers listen to their favourite tunes has not always been the way it is today.
The Digital Age of Music
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Thanks to the evolution of music technology, music has become more accessible and delivered on a number of different platforms over the years.
Before the popularity of MP3s and online streaming, the luxury of listening to music was not as simple or portable. The evolution of music technology Radio and the introduction of FM was the first form of music technology. If you wanted to listen to music, you could only do so via the airwaves.
By the 1950s FM radio became mainstream and through RCA the cassette tape was born. In 1983 cassette tapes overtook vinyl as the most popular medium.
In the 1970s and 1980s we saw the advancement of music mediums. Sony invented the Walkman and the Discman was introduced. The Walkman and Discman were devices that made it possible to listen to music on the go.
The CD became increasingly popular, overtaking the use of cassettes, and the 1990s saw the emergence of MP3s. MP3s are a compressed form of audio data. The 1990s introduced us to the world of MP3s and online file sharing. However, the 2000s was the true era of MP3s. With the rise of MP3s, CD sales started to decline.
Courtesy of Google Images
Apple released the iPod, a palm-sized hard drive based music player, with the iTunes store launching in 2003. Since the release of the iPod in 2001, Apple is one of the leaders in the digital music technology today. An innovator in music players, Apple has introduced many makes and models of the iPod since its debut.
From 2005-2008 the trend of posting music online gained popularity. YouTube and Soundcloud were founded. YouTube has helped launch the careers and discovery of artists like Shawn Mendes, Walk off the Earth, The Weekend and Arctic Monkeys. (To learn how social media helped some of these artists grow their audience, read: https://newmotto.ca/shawn-mendes-and-walk-off-the-earth-find-music-success-using-social-media). Soundcloud allows potential and established artists to embed their music easily on shareable pages. Viewers can then stay on that artist’s website or channel and listen to their songs directly from it.
Spotify, a social streaming service, started in 2008. Allowing listeners to stream music from their desktop, phone and tablet.
2013 and beyond is what can be branded the “age of streaming”. iTunes is at the forefront of the music shopping, with two-thirds of worldwide music purchases made through the app. Music streaming revenue also grew and online radio continued to compete with traditional radio.
- 30% of music consumers use online streaming, with 1/5 of them paying for it.
- Spotify has over 50 million users streaming music online, with 12.5 million subscribers.
Although some of these musical formats may not be a popular choice anymore, there are music lovers who enjoy keeping the old ways of enjoying music alive and have a collection of vinyl records or still go out and buy a physical copy of an album.
If the stats and numbers are any indication, traditional music listening technology is disappearing and becoming less available. Listening to music is moving into and potentially beyond the digital online streaming world. From vinyl to cassette to CDs to MP3 to online streaming, we’ve seen quite the evolution of music technology.
The digital age of music has made it infinitely more accessible. Having an online platform has made music easily accessible to download and share music with a wide range of people. With the internet easily accessed by the touch of a button, users can receive digital content on the go, on their mobile or MP3 devices. Music being online has given individuals a quick, easy and user friendly way to listen to, enjoy, and discover music both old and new.
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Sources:
http://mashable.com/2015/01/07/music-tech-ces/
http://www.vh1.com/music/tuner/2013-10-03/10-artists-discovered-internet/