How has YouTube changed the Music Industry?
YouTube has become an internet sensation over the past few years. Ever since it was founded in February of 2005, YouTube has been revolutionizing the way music is made popular. YouTube makes a broad range of music available for free and increases the visibility of less well-known artists. Anyone with a computer can upload videos, and therefore can put their own music on the web where hundreds of millions of people can view it. The availability of any popular song, as well as the music video that goes along with it, for free on YouTube has hurt CD sales over the past 5 years. Many people have decided that the fifteen or twenty dollars they used to pay for a CD can be spent elsewhere, especially in a struggling economy. They think that a CD is a waste of money when the same music is available on YouTube.
YouTube also makes it easier for artists to get noticed. Anyone has the freedom to post a video on YouTube, and a struggling artist can put his music on the website and receive instant feedback. If people like it they can tell their friends, and the comments posted on the video can help the artist to improve his style if need be. There is a drawback to this though. If the songs are not copyrighted, then there is no protection on the song, and anyone could steal it and claim it as his own work. For young artists that do have songs with protected lyrics and music this is a great way to get their name out there and see what the population thinks.
Another way that YouTube has changed the music industry is in its ease of use. Song downloads can be difficult to manage for people that are not good with technology, and Ipods can be a confusing gadget for some. YouTube on the other hand is very simple. All that you need to do is type in your search and press enter, then all of the matching videos will come up, and you can choose the one that you wish to watch. YouTube truly has revamped the way many think about the music industry. It has made music more accessible, has made it easier for young stars to be noticed, and has adapted itself so that it can be easily used by anyone with a computer. It has made many improvements to the music industry, and more are expected to follow.
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