Apparently (according to Billboard), the time has finally arrived for the launch of Google Music. What seems to be a fairly basic cloud-based locker service will be launched as a beta today May 10. Well, at least for the selected few in the US who will be invited. It is fascinating to see how the difficulties for the music industry and the “tech” industry (what is that btw?...) to get along seem to continue. Spotify has tried for years to get the agreements in place for a US launch but have failed miserably. When you have Google size clout (and Amazon btw who launch a similar music locker service a while ago) there are other paths for getting your service up and running even when the contracts aren’t in place. You simply give the music business the finger and start the service anyway which is what both Google and Amazon have done. Maybe this is how true change is instigated. Individual consumers as well as a range of organisations (without Google’s legal muscles) have already reshaped the industry during the last decade through their obedience and breaking of various laws and agreements. What will happen when the Google’s and the Amazon’s do the same thing (no, it’s not really the same thing, but more or less)?
Once my neighbour had a small ugly dog with a dubious pedigree. This cocky little mongrel threatened everyone and everything that dared to take a step into their yard. The dog’s problem was that it wasn’t really aware of its actual size and was equally aggressive towards dogs of all sizes. His luck lasted for many years, but as you might imagine, it all ended quite abruptly on a lovely day in May, when a man and his Rottweiler strolled past my neighbour’s house.
Even if the music industry won’t end in the same way as my neighbour’s dog, it will probably seem less frightening for smaller stray dogs (e.g. Spotify) to make the shortcut across the music industry yard.
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