Economics Of The Music Industry Economics Essay

Economics Of The Music Industry Economics Essay The Industry has reacted very badly to the consumption of CD sales. Many people blame the decline of CD sales on illegal file sharing and downloads but also to be considered is the way that CDs have been distributed and marketed over the last few years. Some of the reasons could include non competitive pricing of CDs, reduced number of shops stocking them and some of the major labels unwillingness to experiment with other form of entertainment industry such as video games and DVDs which hold a considerable force on the industry.  [1]  The competition from other media such as the gaming industry has also affected CD sales. EA (Electronic Arts) is incorporating music and cinema experiences into the games themselves  [2]  . Piracy through CD burning has affected the sales badly unlike other industries such as the software and gaming industry which is forever updating itself. The CD has been around for over 20 years now and the music industry has not been so fast to keep reinventing itself and has fallen behind in the technology race. Whilst Physical sales are falling there has been an increase of ticket sales at concerts and festivals and revenues have grown. In 2009 a report was released by the Performing Rights Society showing the retail value of recorded music fell 6% whilst live revenues grew 13%.  [3]  David Kusek describes this as a good thing for the industry as only 4 percent of records ever sold enough copies to break even.  [4]  The result in the increase of demand for live music could be down to the record industries obsession with marketing and huge profit margins and has gradually become detached from its artists and consumers. Where as generally live music promoters and agents have always been closer to the artists and their audiences  [5]   The relationship between artist, consumer and label is changing due to technology and the internet and this has affected the way in which music can be distributed. The relationship between the artist and label can be difficult. Music labels sometimes edit the artwork or the title of a song, much to the frustration of the artist. The artists have turned to the Internet and the role of labels is becoming increasingly diminished, as artists are able to freely distribute their own material through file sharing, web radio, and other peer to peer services, for little or no cost.  [6]  Bigger artists have ended their contracts. Radioheads problems with their label in 2007 ended with them releasing their album on their own and subsequently released as a pay what you want sales model as an online download.  [7]   The relationship has also changed between artists and consumers. Through the internet fans are now a lot closer to the favourite artists. For example, Tom Delonge, an American Rock musician created a website called Modlife.com which allows uses to connect to bands, artists and personalities using live video broadcasts, text messaging, video blogs, mobile updating and twitter feeds.  [8]   The digital transformation has had a huge impact in the way artist merchandise is sold. The internet can now be use to sell merchandise directly marketed towards the fans. Before the internet, merchandising was selling hats and shirts to a long queue of fans at a venue, but now products are directly related to current fashions and culture. For example Grindstore.com specifically directs is merchandise towards fans of rock music and states it is able to offer the most comprehensive range of male and female music merchandise from all over the world  [9]  Grindstore features clothing from bands such as Greenday, Metalica, Slipknot and Motorhead all in one place. Other similar companies such as the American based Hottopic.com are a multi million dollar company showing revenue over twelve months ending July 31, 2009 was $768,200,000, a 4.52% increase from the previous year.  [10]  This just proves the power of music merchandising and direct marketing using the internet. For the music industry it is a hard task safeguarding existing sources of income and finding ways of developing new ways of income. One solution to safeguarding the future of music industrys income is through a change in the way which music is licensed. One way might be through a small fee that allows users to freely download all music. This could be through a tax which is payable on media products such as mp3 players, Ipods etc or through a blanket licence similar to that of the British Broadcasting Cooperation which is charged to all United Kingdom households, companies and organisations using any type of equipment that can receive and play music. These possibilities could be created by the record companies or part government intervention. I think this will be one of the best ways to create a source of income as it is becoming increasingly harder to police the web for illegal downloads. Another possibility in creating a new source of income is to become more precise in which the PRS collects royalties through the advances of the internet by creating a framework. Currently royalties collected from restaurants for example rely upon human estimations and averages and no consideration is made for the diversity of music played in different types of venues. The use of digital technology could help this to be more accurate. To conclude, I have discussed how the UK music industry has reacted to current changes in consumption and distribution with specific analysis to how the industry has reacted badly to the decline in CD sales but the consumption of live music has increased. I have shown how direct marketing and merchandising by companies like grindstore.com is creating big profits for the music industry through the use of the internet. Through the changing relationships between artist, label and consumer I have shown how music distribution is changing and how due websites such as modlife.com fans are ever closer to their artists. Finally I have demonstrated ways in which the music industry can safeguard their revenues such as a blanket licence or by creating new ways in which royalties are collected.

Advanced Medical Technology Solution Essay

Would you, as Mr. Winter, recommend a loan to AMT? If so, on what basis? As Mr. Winter, I would recommend a loan to Advanced Medical Technology Corporation (AMT). There are several reasons why I would recommend a loan to AMT. The biggest factor is this company is still in the growth / infancy stage of its life cycle. They have invested large amounts of capital into the research and development, and marketing of its products, and it is too soon to see the rewards from these investments. Some of the changes that need to be made in order for a loan to be approved for AMT include improving manufacturing efficencies, short-term loans, operations, and managing their accounts recieveables. The manufacturing operations of AMT can be streamlined which will enable AMT to see greater profits. Right now they are building in ten to twelve week lot sizes, and they are not always making the products they need. With the investment into a information system, they can streamline this process. This was installed in 1984, and they are making progress. I would recommend reshuffling some positions (i. e. , MRP, planning, master data) in order to obtain the full benefit of the information system. They can build larger lot sizes of some products which will cut down on the direct labor costs for the materials. Making only the products they know they have demand on will minimize the excess and obsolesnce amount they have to reserve for each quarter. AMT can also improve its accounts receivable days outstanding ratio by having more control over it’s A/R. Having someone do background checks on new customers instead of granting all new customers the same 30 days. Some customers with poor credit history should be given no credit, and must pay COD or before the products are shipped to minimize risk of default. Well-known customers or customers with great credit can be given more than 30 days. Also, collection of past-due accounts should be pursued more aggressively. Based on the criteria mentioned, and the financial statements, I would give AMT the full $8 million line of credit. The company has had great growth in its revenues. Although this company has not been profitable over the last three years, if it had to turn a profit, it could do so by eliminating research and development. Just by selling existing products, it would have had a net income of $3. 8 million in 1985 if it did not have the research and development expense. I am not advising the removal of R&D, I am just providing a worst case scenario for the company. Ending the R&D department would cause no new products, and new improvements to existing products in an ever changing evenronment. This company has the potential to become profitable in 1986, and pay down significant amounts to its debt by the end of 1987. And they need to pay down some debt in order to improve their working capital which was fine in 1983, but because of expenses (possibly related to the installation of the information system) in 1984 its working capital has soured.

Information Businness Essay

1. What management, organization, and technology factors were behind the Cincinnati Zoo losing opportunities to increase revenue Three main reasons why investments in information technology do not always produce positive results – Information quality which mean High-quality decisions require high-quality information – Management filters which mean Managers have selective attention and have variety of biases that reject information that does not conform to prior conceptions – Organizational inertia and politics which meStrong forces within organizations resist making decisions calling for major change 2. Why was replacing legacy point-of-sale systems and implementing a data warehouse essential to an information system solution? High-velocity automated decision making Made possible through computer algorithms precisely defining steps for a highly structured decision Humans taken out of decision For example: High-speed computer trading programs i. Trades executed in 30 milliseconds ii. Responsible for â€Å"Flash Crash† of 2010 Require safeguards to ensure proper operation and regulation 3. How did the Cincinnati Zoo benefit from business intelligence? How did it enhance operational performance and decision making? What role was played by predictive analytics? Business intelligence Infrastructure for collecting, storing, analyzing data produced by business Databases, data warehouses, data marts High-velocity automated decision making Made possible through computer algorithms precisely defining steps for a highly structured decision Information systems can only assist in some of the roles played by managers 4. Visit the IBM Cognos Web site and describe the business intelligence tools that would be the most useful for the Cincinnati Zoo. introduces the concept of business intelligence and analytics. The text gives the example of Hallmark Cards, which uses SAS analytics software to analyze buying patterns and determine the most effective marketing plan for different types of customers. For example, which customers would respond best to direct mail or e-mail, and to what types of messages. It is important to understand that business intelligence and business analytics are products defined by hardware and software vendors. This is also one of the fastest growing segments in the U.S. software

Mother Courage and Her Children Play Overview

Mother Courage and Her Children mixes dark humor, social commentary, and tragedy. The title character, Mother Courage, travels across war-weary Europe selling alcohol, food, clothing, and supplies to soldiers on both sides. As she struggles to improve her fledgling business, Mother Courage loses her adult children, one after another. The Setting Set in Poland, Germany, and other parts of Europe, Mother Courage and Her Children spans the years 1624 to 1636. This period is during the Thirty Years War, a conflict that pitted Protestant armies against Catholic forces and resulted in an enormous loss of life.   The Title Character Anna Fierling (aka Mother Courage) has been enduring for a long time, traveling with nothing except a supply wagon pulled along by her adult children: Eilif, Swiss Cheese, and Kattrin. Throughout the play, though she does show concern for her children, she seems more interested in profit and financial security than the safety and well-being of her offspring. She has a love/hate relationship with war. She loves war because of its potential economic benefits. She hates war because of its destructive, unpredictable nature. She has the nature of a gambler, always trying to guess just how long the war will last so that she can take a risk and buy more supplies to sell. She fails dreadfully as a parent when she is focused on her business. When she fails to keep track of her eldest son, Eilif, he joins the army. When Mother Courage tries to haggle for the life of her second son (Swiss Cheese), she offers a low payment in exchange for his freedom. Her stinginess results in his execution. Eilif is also executed. Although his death is not a direct result of her choices, she misses her only chance to visit with him because she is at the market working her business instead of at church, where Eilif expects her to be. Near the plays conclusion, Mother Courage is again absent when her daughter Kattrin martyrs herself in order to save innocent townspeople. Despite losing all of her children by the end of the play, it is arguable that Mother Courage never learns anything, thus never experiences an epiphany or transformation. In his editorial notes, Brecht explains that  it is not incumbent on the playwright to give Mother Courage insight at the end. Rather, Brechts protagonist catches a glimpse of social awareness in scene six, but it is quickly lost and never to be regained as the war wears on, year after year. Eilif, the Brave Son The eldest and most independent of Annas children, Eilif is persuaded by a recruiting officer who lures him with talk of glory and adventure. Despite his mothers protests, Eilif enlists. Two years later, the audience sees him again. He is thriving as a soldier who slaughters peasants and loots civilian farms to support his armys cause. He rationalizes his actions by saying necessity knows no law. In scene eight, during a brief time of peace, Eilif steals from a peasant household and murders a woman in the process. He does not understand the difference between killing during wartime (which his peers consider an act of bravery) and killing during peacetime (which his peers consider a crime punishable by death). Mother Courages friends, the chaplain and the cook, do not tell her about Eilifs execution. At the end of the play, she still believes she has one child left alive. Swiss Cheese, the Honest Son Why is he named Swiss Cheese? Because hes good at pulling wagons. Thats Brechts humor for you! Mother Courage claims that her second son has a fatal flaw: honesty. However, this good-natured characters real downfall might be his indecision. When he is hired to be a paymaster for the Protestant army, his duty is torn between the rules of his superiors and his loyalty to his mother. Because he cannot successfully negotiate those two opposing forces, he is ultimately captured and executed. Kattrin, Mother Courages Daughter By far the most sympathetic character in the play, Kattrin is unable to speak. According to her mother, she is in constant danger of being physically and sexually abused by soldiers. Mother Courage often insists that Kattrin wear unseemly clothes and be covered in dirt to draw attention away from her feminine charms. When Kattrin is injured, resulting in a scar on her face, Mother Courage considers it a blessing — now, Kattrin is less likely to be assaulted. Kattrin wants to find a husband. However, her mother keeps putting it off, insisting that they must wait until peacetime (which never arrives during Kattrins adult life). Kattrin desperately wants a child of her own. When she learns that children might be murdered by soldiers, she sacrifices her life by drumming loudly and waking up the townspeople so they are not caught by surprise. Although she perishes, the children (and many other civilians) are saved. Therefore, even without children of her own, Kattrin proves to be far more motherly than the title character. About the Playwright  Bertolt Brech Bertolt (sometimes spelled Berthold) Brecht lived from 1898 to 1956. He was raised by a middle-class German family, despite some of his claims that he had an impoverished childhood. Early in his youth, he discovered a love for the theater that would become his means of creative expression as well as a form of political activism. Brecht fled Nazi Germany before the onset of World War II. In 1941, his anti-war play Mother Courage and Her Children was performed for the first time, premiering in Switzerland. After the war, Brecht moved to Soviet-occupied East Germany, where he directed a revised production of the same play in 1949. Source: Brecht, Bertolt. Mother Courage and Her Children. Grove Press, September 11, 1991.