1 Blog Post about
The Medium is the Message
Show Topics
  • Classic definition of media: "Outlets or tools used to store and deliver information or data".
  • "Technology not only enables content categories, it defines their business models and shapes the content, too"
  • Advent of the record in 1850s - "after centuries of variability, music suddenly had a defined run-time. "
  • Subsequently, as limitations were relieved by the cassette & CD, song lengths still remained 3 to 4 minutes - "Technology might have relaxed its grip on music’s length, but it had strengthened its hold on business models."
  • iTunes - business model moves from albums to individual songs. Spotify - "Matching revenue with usage and paying talent as and to the degree consumers listened to their works"
  • Because spotify classifies a listen as min 30 seconds, incentive to longer is decreased, leading to shorter song lengths. - Billboard hot 100 songs less than 2:30 has increased 600% between 2017 & today.
  • Interesting point on human vs algorithmic discrimination - a lot of consternation about the latter but "N***az4life was the second biggest album in the country by units purchased, but 21st in its own genre when it came to what was “selling” and “hottest.”
Read More
Hide