Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Supply of Music after the Introduction of Internet Marketing Essay Example for Free

Supply of Music after the Introduction of Internet Marketing Essay Internet allows the labels to make the distribution directly to the customers bypassing the retailers. Internet eliminates the necessity of the retailers and by this way the recording companies are able to add the amounts payable to the retailers to their own revenues. Since the retailers were to be paid a considerable portion of the total revenue generated the recording companies always finds ways to eliminate the retailers and garner the additional revenues. 1. Another impact internet had on the music industry is the reduction in revenues as a result of piracies and illegal copying of the music products. Though the proportion of such illegal copying is very less in the past with the advancements in the technology with ‘compression protocols and high-speed internet connections’ have resulted in a large manifestation of this issue especially in the college campuses. The websites like Napster that provide free software and central website to download the required songs, have proliferated the problem of illegal copying. In the post-web period that is after the introduction of the internet marketing of the music products, the music industry has been subjected to the threat of a wide spread piracy which has the effect of affecting the sale of the original products. These piracies take the form of piracy of Compact Discs, private burning of the CDs and the peer-to-peer swapping of music files online through the internet. Out of these the biggest threat to the music industry is the peer-to-peer (P2P) supply networks facilitated by the internet. In the P2P networks the exchange of music takes place by the swapping of music files through the internet. Under P2P there is an utter disregard of the labels of the records and P2P bypasses any restrictions and allows the swapping of music files by the consumers without the payment of any money to the record company. P2P also enables the artists to supply the music without the knowledge and control of the record companies. The introduction of MP3 technology along with the possibility of file sharing has enabled the supply of music over the internet much easier and directly to the consumers on their personal computers. As a technical advancement the easy accessibility of music in the personal computers facilitated the proliferation of other portable audio devices that enable the MP3 files to be transferred to these portable devices after downloading from the personal computer. These portable devices could easily be carried around by the consumers. The portable audio devices have the distinct advantage of being small and easy to carry along. These devices enable the consumer to listen to the music while moving around, travelling or while doing exercises. The advent of these smaller audio devices has in effect enhanced the demand for music over the internet as it is possible to transfer the music to these devices from the personal computers where the music is already downloaded via internet. As shown in the figure below the role of internet has increased significantly during the recent periods in the supply of music. So long as the consumers download the music that carries a copyright, in a legitimate way after making payment to the online trading organizations the position of the record companies can be considered safe. In fact internet offers a wide scope to the music industry as the newly emerging digital technologies offers music to large groups of people and enables the audience to have access to their favorite artistes. The internet also offers the possibility of accessing old, new and unusual music at very competitive and affordable prices. (Gerard F. Lewis et al 2005) On the darker side of the internet, it offers scope for music piracies. There is nothing new about the piracy in the music industry. But according to Hammersley, (2002) the scale and ease with which the music piracy is attempted in the internet is really frightening. Source: Parikh (1999) With the advancement in the technology now it is possible to download any piece of music from the internet without paying the charges or cost to the online trading company. This amounts to the pirating of the music piece. Napster, the American company is the famous promoter of such technology for downloading the music from the internet without payment. Thus the new technologies have broken the control of the record company owning the rights for the content form preventing such unauthorized downloads. It made the record companies to realize that they have underestimated the threat to the industry from the piracy and have been very sluggish in reacting to protect their interests. The protection of their rights from illegal trespass would involve the registration and protection of their copyrights more strongly. (Gerard F. Lewis et al 2005) One of the basic business models of the music industry is to make music stars. A music star is made when the music created by the musicians fits into a well defined set of factors that can stimulate the demand of a majority of consumers universally. Here what comes into fore is the music consumers’ needs and preferences. There are certain variables that initialize the customers’ needs and preferences. Rosen (1983) observes musicians with lesser talent are easily substituted by those with more talents. It is also quite possible in the present day context of the availability modern communication technologies like internet and television to reach an audience of unlimited magnitude. Because of this trend there is always the possibility that the musicians with greater talent will always prevail over the musicians with comparatively lesser talent. Using the economic theory advocated by the renowned economist Marshall (1920) it can be pointed out that the technological advancement is the key factor in determining the music industry’s demand. But in addition the ‘talent’ can also be regarded as the deciding factor for the demand. But the only issue with talent is that it cannot be measured. The influence of social pressure also plays a key role in the determination of the need and preferences of the customer. The influence of peer group also changes the customers’ preferences as per the study conducted by Johnstone and Katz (1957) In this case attendance to concerts by music celebrities or listening to their works is considered as a necessity to form a basis of communicating with each other in any peer group. But social pressure is also another variable that cannot be measures as in the case of talent. Hence it may not be precisely possible to identify the extent of the impact of these variables on the customers’ preferences. The other variables that influence the online music consumers’ preferences are the individual tastes, knowledge about music, communication possibilities and the portion of the income that is apportioned by the consumer for music related expenses. Crain and Tollison (1997) identified that the amount of income reserved for music determines the quality and taste of the music as with lesser cost the consumer can listen to the music by non-stars than spending more to listen to music by celebrity stars. The last but not the least criteria is the ‘music time’ denoting the time that can be undividedly distributable for listening to music. This also determines the customers’ needs and preferences over the music online.

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Censorship - A Clash of Wills and Morals Essay -- Argumentative Persua

Censorship - A Clash of Wills and Morals A list of the greatest literature of the English language could be compiled almost solely by using a chart of the works most often censored by schools and libraries. Some people believe that the books most frequently banned consist only of trashy paperbacks and frivolous â€Å"beach-reading.† However, usually in censorship cases, there is a clash of wills and morals between the teacher or librarian who finds a work worthy of students’ and community members’ time and the parent or citizen who sees little literary value in the work of choice. Seldom is the teacher or librarian alone in thinking a work justified for reflection. More often than not, the controversial work has made it into several canons of great literature and onto several great books lists. The conclusion that may logically be drawn is that something about these controversial books is special enough to cause commotion on both ends of the critical spectrum. It may even be suggested that a book is censored for the very same reasons it is canonized. The great works of the literary canon are each striking texts that encapsulate a new voice, idea, point of view, or controversial subject matter; each of these works contains a new and exciting concept. If there were nothing striking about these works, they would never have been canonized. However, with these new ideas and points of view comes suspicion and fear. If one critic lauds a novel for giving a new perspective on a controversial issue, there is no doubt that there will also be a citizen looking to maintain the status quo and suppress these new ideas. It is quite clear that the controversial works of great lit... ....bb.com/bbbanned.cfm. Burress, Lee. Battle of the Books. Metuchen, NJ: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1989. Garry, Patrick. An American Paradox: Censorship in a Nation of Free Speech. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 1993. Heins, Marjorie. Sex, Sin, and Blasphemy. New York: The Nex Press, 1998. Karolides, Nicholas J., Margaret Bald, and Dawn B. Sova. 100 Banned Books. New York: Checkmark Books, 1999. Kranich, Nancy. â€Å"Develop Yourself: Expose Your Mind to a Banned Book.† American Library Association, 2000. Online. www.ala.org. Levine, Michael G. Writing Through Repression: Literature, Censorship, Psychoanalysis. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1994. Noble, William. Bookbanning in America. Middlebury, VT: Paul S. Eriksson, 1990. Woods, L. B. A Decade of Censorship in America. Metuchen, NJ: The Scarecrow Press, 1979.

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Bible & Internet

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. -Day 1 – God created light and separated the light from the darkness, calling light â€Å"day† and darkness â€Å"night. † 3 And God said, â€Å"Let there be light,† and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light â€Å"day,† and the darkness he called â€Å"night. † And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. And God said, â€Å"Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water. † 7 So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the vault â€Å"sky. † And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day. -Day 2 – God created an expanse to separate the waters and called it â€Å"sky. † 9 And God said, â€Å"Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear. † And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground â€Å"land,† and the gathered waters he called â€Å"seas. † And God saw that it was good. 1 Then God said, â€Å"Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds. † And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day. -Day 3 – God created the dry ground and gathered the waters, calling the dry ground â€Å"land,† and the gathered waters â€Å"seas. † On day three, God also created vegetation (plants and trees). 4 And God said, â€Å"Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth. † And it was so. 16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 9 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day. -Day 4 – God created the sun, moon, and the stars to give light to the earth and to govern and separate the day and the night. These would also serve as signs to mark seasons, days, and years. 20 And God said, â€Å"Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky. † 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, â€Å"Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth. † 23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day. -Day 5 – God created every living creature of the seas and every winged bird, blessing them to multiply and fill the waters and the sky with life. 24 And God said, â€Å"Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind. And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 26 Then God said, â€Å"Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground. † 27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 8 God blessed them and said to them, â€Å"Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground. † 29 Then God said, â€Å"I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food. And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. -Day 6 – God created the animals to fill the earth. On day six, God also created man and woman (Adam and Eve) in his own image to commune with him. He blessed them and gave them every creature and the whole earth to rule over, care for, and cultivate. -Day 7 – God had finished his work of creation and so he rested on the seventh day, blessing it and making it holy.

Saturday, January 4, 2020

About the Balfour Declaration of 1917

The Balfour Declaration was a November 2, 1917 letter from British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Lord Rothschild that made public the British support of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. The Balfour Declaration led the League of Nations to entrust the United Kingdom with the Palestine Mandate in 1922. Background The Balfour Declaration was a product of years of careful negotiation. After centuries of living in a diaspora, the 1894 Dreyfus Affair in France shocked Jews into realizing they would not be safe from arbitrary antisemitism unless they had their own country. In response, Jews created the new concept of political Zionism in which it was believed that through active political maneuvering, a Jewish homeland could be created. Zionism was becoming a popular concept by the time World War I began. World War I and Chaim Weizmann During World War I, Great Britain needed help. Since Germany (Britains enemy during WWI) had cornered the production of acetone—an important ingredient for arms production—Great Britain may have lost the war if Chaim Weizmann had not invented a fermentation process that allowed the British to manufacture their own liquid acetone. It was this fermentation process that brought Weizmann to the attention of David Lloyd George (Minister of Ammunitions) and Arthur James Balfour (previously the Prime Minister but at this time the First Lord of the Admiralty). Chaim Weizmann was not just a scientist; he was also the leader of the Zionist Movement. Diplomacy Weizmanns contact with Lloyd George and Balfour continued, even after Lloyd George became prime minister and Balfour was transferred to the Foreign Office in 1916. Additional Zionist leaders such as Nahum Sokolow also pressured Great Britain to support a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Although Balfour, himself, was in favor of a Jewish state, Great Britain particularly favored the declaration as an act of policy. Britain wanted the United States to join World War I and the British hoped that by supporting a Jewish homeland in Palestine, the world Jewish community would be able to sway the U.S. to join the war. Announcing the Balfour Declaration Though the Balfour Declaration went through several drafts, the final version was issued on November 2, 1917, in a letter from Balfour to Lord Rothschild, president of the British Zionist Federation. The main body of the letter quoted the decision of the October 31, 1917, British Cabinet meeting. This declaration was accepted by the League of Nations on July 24, 1922, and embodied in the mandate that gave Great Britain temporary administrative control of Palestine. The White Paper In 1939, Great Britain reneged on the Balfour Declaration by issuing the White Paper, which stated that creating a Jewish state was no longer a British policy. It was also Great Britains change in policy toward Palestine, especially the White Paper, that prevented millions of European Jews to escape from Nazi-occupied Europe to Palestine before and during the Holocaust. The Balfour Declaration Foreign OfficeNovember 2nd, 1917Dear Lord Rothschild,I have much pleasure in conveying to you, on behalf of His Majestys Government, the following declaration of sympathy with Jewish Zionist aspirations which has been submitted to, and approved by, the Cabinet.His Majestys Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.I should be grateful if you would bring this declaration to the knowledge of the Zionist Federation.Yours sincerely,Arthur James Balfour