A man much more brilliant than I once said that you must adapt or die to succeed in business. Warner Music Group's (WMG) sales have dropped 14 percent while digital sales fell 5 percent in the past three months alone. Clearly, WMG is going for suicide.
It's not a shocking announcement. The big labels are struggling to find their mojo. They will blame piracy, of course, but the truth is that artists are beginning to see the light. They are beginning to understand that they can do it without the labels and that social media and the Internet is the way to fame and fortune. Perhaps Amazon will do to the music industry as to what it is currently doing to the publishing industry, and maybe Apple will follow along.
But seriously, who buys music anymore? I have been a subscriber to Rdio and, before that, Pandora Radio for a long time now (not to mention Grooveshark) and have no desire to own music any longer. I know there are those who will disagree with me, but for the average consumer who simply wants to listen to music and is willing to spend a few bucks a month, this is a great time.
