The Future of Music and the Music Business

Course Authors:

Enrollment Information

1-866-BERKLEE
1-617-747-2146 (outside US)
advisor@berkleemusic.com
http://online.berklee.edu/

Course Info

• For-credit tuition: $1,400
• Non-credit tuition: $1,200
• Credits: 3
• Duration: 12 weeks
• Catalog #: BMB-140a

Overview

Most of what we take for granted in the music business today is brand new. A decade ago there was no iPod, YouTube, Myspace, Facebook or Apple iTunes store. A decade from now, the industry will be very different than it is today and anyone seeking a career in music needs to learn to adapt and exploit the trends that are shaping the future of the music business.

Now in its 5th revision, this best selling music business course is about discovering successful strategies for the future. This course is essential for all artists, songwriters and music business people seeking successful careers in the music business.

This course is packed with insight, facts and examples from artists and business people creating the future of music. The discussions, interactive exercises, and interviews with music industry leaders, will get you to challenge the conventional thinking about the business of music, and explore new ways of creating, financing, promoting, and distributing it. Each week, we will examine an aspect of the evolving music industry, reflect on changes that are affecting it, and evaluate how these changes, technologies and powerful trends can directly impact your career.

The music industry has been utterly ripped apart by the impact of technology and social media and will never be the same again. New structures and strategies for driving revenue and opportunity are forming and new approaches to the business of music are working more successfully than past approaches. Find out about what is happening and will happen in the music business and how to apply that to your future.

The Future of Music online course lets you examine scenarios for the future from the perspective of both the creative aspect and the business aspect. Together we will look at the landscape of artists, writers, managers and publishers sitting in the center of an entirely new digital ecosystem.

You will learn:

• The Top 10 Truths that will guide the music business in the future
• How money is really made in the music industry and how to get financing for your projects
• The major forces at play in the music market today and tomorrow and how to capitalize on them
• The way technology continuously transforms the music business and how you can leverage technology
• New approaches to promotion like Direct-to-Fan and online licensing that work and challenge conventional thinking
• Business models for the future that exploit digital distribution, fan financing and generate income

Based in part, on the best selling book "The Future of Music: Manifesto for the Digital Music Revolution" this online course could be the most important music business course you will ever take. In it, you will learn directly from interviews, quotes, and insight from music industry heavy-hitters such as: Arcade Fire, Pomplamoose, Paramore, Jill Sobule, Steve Jobs and Apple, Terry McBride and Nettwerk, Ian Rogers and Topspin, Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain, Chris Blackwell and Jimmy Buffett, Steve Schnur, Electronic Arts, Primary Wave, Amazon, Rockband, Hypebot, Pandora, and many others.

Syllabus

Lesson 1: Music Industry Overview

• What Is the Music Business?
• What a Major Label Offers
• What an Indie Label Offers
• Record Company Expenses
• Overview of Copyright
• What Is a Music Publisher?
• Touring and Merchandising

Lesson 2: The State of the Industry Today

• How Is the Business Doing Overall?
• Visualizing the Recording Business
• The Truth About CD Sales
• Indie Label Perspective
• A Broken System for Artists
• Problems with Copyright in the Digital Age
• Music Licensing

Lesson 3: The Flow of Money

• Money Flow in the Industry
• Legitimate Digital Downloading
• The iTunes Model
• Models That Will Continue to Work
• Music Business versus Record Business

Lesson 4: Marketing and Promotion

• Word-of-Mouth Promotion
• Radio
• Alternative Radio Broadcasting
• Marketing and Promotion Methods: Freebies
• New Forms of Promotion
• The Psychology of Sharing Music

Lesson 5: Distribution

• CD Sales
• CD Pricing
• Local Retailers
• Online Digital Distribution
• Comparing Online Retailers

Lesson 6: Artist/Writer Perspectives

• Interviews
• For or Against File Sharing?
• Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
• Emerging Artists
• Artist Point of View

Lesson 7: Customer Perspectives

• Kids Today—Shifting Perspectives
• What Do the Numbers Look Like?
• What Do the People Say?
• How is Music Discovered and Acquired?
• Your Perspective as a Customer
• The Future Relationship between Fans and Artists

Lesson 8: New Business Models

• How Has the Music Business Adapted to Change in the Past
• Recorded Music Pricing Models
• Track or Subscription
• Licensing the P2P Networks—The Utility Model
• MTV Future of Music

Lesson 9: Impact of Technology

• Historical Perspectives
• Adapting to New Technologies
• The Ravages of Free
• Legitimizing P2P

Lesson 10: What to Do If You Are an Artist/Writer

• What Do Artists Really Need?
• Elements of Success
• Do It Yourself (DIY)—Because You Always Had to Anyway
• Attracting Attention to Your Band
• How to DIY
• Creative Ways to Make Money
• Checklist for Starting Your Own Musician Business
• Challenges of Alternative Revenue Streams

Lesson 11: What to Do If You Are on the Business Side—Part 1

• New Ways of Promoting and Marketing
• Lessons from the Adult Entertainment Industry
• New Business Models
• Business Planning

Lesson 12: What to Do If You Are on the Business Side—Part 2

• New Century Business Model
• What to Do If You're a Record Label
• What to Do If You're a Publisher
• New Technology Makes for New Opportunities
• Ideal Future

Faculty bios

Requirements

The Future of Music: Manifesto for the Digital Music Revolution by Dave Kusek and Gerd Leonhard

The Future of Music will show you cool new ways to find music and connect with your favorite artists. Discover the top-10 truths about the music business of the future and how you can benefit from the explosion in digital music, today and tomorrow.

Software

• PC Web browser: Firefox 3.0 or higher, Internet Explorer 7 or higher
• Macintosh Web browser: Firefox 3.0 or higher, Safari 3.0 or higher
• Flash Player: current version
• QuickTime Player: current version
• Acrobat Reader: current version

Hardware Requirements: PC Users

• Windows XP, Vista or 7
• Intel Pentium 4 or higher
• 1 GB RAM
• 500 MB hard drive space recommended
• Sound card
• Speakers or headphones for your computer

Hardware Requirements: Mac Users

• OS X 10.5 or higher
• Intel Mac
• 1 GB RAM
• 500 MB hard drive space recommended
• Speakers or headphones for your computer

Media / Press Coverage

Performing Songwriter, May, 2005
School Of Rock

"By far the biggest benefit of the online course was the wealth of information. The class took us from music industry basics all the way up to intricate copyright laws."

Get the PDF Article Here

Mass High Tech, May 2, 2005
A cyber-sales superhero from Newbury Comics

"It's not easy being in the music industry nowadays. Whether you're an artist, label executive or record store owner, online technology has made it tougher for everyone in the business to turn a profit unless they keep up with the times. There are rewards, however, for those who do."

Get the PDF Article Here

Mix Online, May 18, 2005
Newbury Comics CEO Enrolls in Berkleemusic.com

"Decades after earning his marketing degree at M.I.T., Newbury Comics CEO Mike Dreese enrolled at Berkleemusic.com, the online extension school of the Berklee College of Music, to study "The Future of Music."

Get the PDF Article Here

Check out The Future of Music book Website

For sample chapters, author tour updates, author blogs, and interactive games, check out the Future of Music book Website by clicking below.

The Future of Music book Website