Music Industry Terminology

Convergence of Technology
- The change from analogue to digital.

Convergence of Industry Activity
- Things that used to be seperate idustries now share commonalities. Such as television, phone and music.

Synergy
- Two or more industries combine to produce a result that they can't achieve by themselves. e.g. Take That music in the Morrisons ardert; the soundtrack to the Tony Hawk games.

Conglomerate
- A company of companies, such as Sony. They have small sister companies for different parts of the industries.

Globalisation
- The industry operating on a global scale. Record label selling it's products on a worldwide basis

Analogue Music
-The vinyl and tape era of music. More than one output

Digitalisation
-The process of converting analagoue to digital, e.g. from vinyl and tapes to CDs and mp3s. Happened around 1984. Only two outputs (binary code).

Vertical Integration
-The merger or takeover of companies operating at different stages of the production/distribution process

Horizontal Integration
-Absorption into a single firm of several firms involved in the same level of production and sharing resources at that level. Such as Sony Music as they own a number of record labels such as Epic, Columbia, Arista

Major Record Label
-The music industry (or music business) sells compositions, recordings and performances of music. Such as Sony, Universal and Warner

Subsidiary Label
-Smaller/sister labels such as the record label Sony Music owns the seperate labels such as Epic, Arista and Columbia. These smaller labels within the horizontal integration are the subsidiary labels

Independant Label
-An independent record label (or indie record label) is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. Indie record labels are where a great number of bands and musical acts get a start, and where many find their success

Niche Audience
-The targeting of sa small but significant group of consumers with a media product directed specifically at their interests. Usually work best on a global scale

Mainstream Audience
-Mainstream is, generally, the common current of thought of the majority. However, the mainstream is far from cohesive; rather the concept is often considered a cultural construct

Fans
-A person who has a strong interest in or admiration for a particular sport, art form, or famous person

Active audiences
-Audience members who already are interested in an organization, issue, or cause. Instead of waiting to receive information on it, they seek it out from many sources and when doing so, they speak as well as listen

Audiophiles
-A hi-fi enthusiast. Early adopters of music and audio technology

Early Adopters
-Early adopters of music and audio technology, the first people that buy new things because they're new. Such as people who wait outside for a game to be released

Consumption
-The using up of a resource

Web 2.0
-The second generation of the web, it's interactive. Like YouTube, Blogspot and Facebook

Meta-tags / personalisation
-The information within the mp3 such as genre, release year, company. This is mostly noticible within iTunes and an iPod.

Download
-Copy (data) from one computer system to another or to a disk

Streaming
-(of data) Transmitted in a continuous stream while earlier parts are being used

Peer to Peer
-The distribution of a form of media that is shared between active participents over a network. It's like a spider web of computers. e.g. downloading from programs such as Napster or Limewire

Piracy
-A practice of theft and bootlegging

Portability / miniturisation
-The act of making on a greatly reduced scale

Multi-track
-They allow performers to record one track, then hear it played back while they play along onto a second

Sampling
-The technique of digitally encoding music or sound and reusing it as part of a composition or recording

Digital Audio Workstation (DAW)
-A computer based setup for editing material. Such as a computer with MIDI input and output, as well as the software used to edit this like Cubase or Audacity

A&R - Artists and Repertoire
-Artists and repertoire (A&R) is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists

Record Deal - Contract - Royalties
-A recording contract (commonly called a record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist (or group), where the artist makes a record (or series of records) for the label to sell and promote

Distribution
-The action or process of supplying goods to stores and other businesses that sell to consumers

Plugging / Marketing
-The action or business of promoting and selling products or services, including market research and advertising