The Death of the iPod Classic

Recently, Apple has discontinued the iPod Classic, an MP3 player containing a hard drive that was known for its relatively high level of storage, allowing users to store up to 160 GB of music on the device. This device is particularly popular amongst music fanatics like myself, as it allows us to store a large number of albums and songs on it, much more so than any iPod Touch or iPhone. However, the market trend has been steadily moving away from iPods and into iPhones and streaming services, meaning that the iPods that are still in existence have lower storage capacity and in the case of the iPod Touch essentially act like an iPhone without the actual phone. Apple’s Tim Cook has said that the real reason behind the discontinuation is that the company could not source the parts required to make iPod Classics any more, a surprising move considering that one would think Apple could easily figure out how to get something like that done. As this article points out, the more likely scenario is just that continuing to make them wasn’t looking profitable any longer, even if they tried to create an updated iPod Classic. It is clear that consumers no longer value high storage capacity and/or “ownership” of their music, choosing instead to download single songs instead of albums and also to listen to streaming services, which for many people have rendered iPods moot. (Not to mention many consumers simply listening to music through their iPhones instead.)

For me, this is all unsurprising but also rather sad, as hard drive-based iPods generally don’t have the longest lifespan, especially compared to more recent flash drive-based iPods. I continue to use my iPod Classic, but it’s not going to last forever, and I will have to figure out a new way to listen to my large library of music eventually. iPod Touches and iPhones simply don’t have near enough storage capacity to interest me as purely music-listening devices, and while I enjoy Spotify, I like having a player that allows me to listen without having to rely upon an internet connection or a paid subscription. In all honesty, the iPod in total might be phased out in the future, as iPhones have the same storage capacity with the added benefit of more features. I like having an MP3 player that allows me to “escape” the world around me and just listen; with my phone, whenever I try to listen to music I also find myself on Facebook or playing a game; it sort of cheapens the listening experience. My hope is that there will be an emphasis on larger storage capacity in future iterations of the iPod Touch, but the price will likely be exorbitant if that is to be the case. Of course, iPod Classics aren’t completely gone. If you would like to buy one, just check Amazon! Albeit at an increased price of about $500. No one said loving music came cheap.

Hi-Definition Streaming: Can Tidal Compete with Spotify?

Ever since Spotify was released in the United States, there have been myriad other streaming services hoping to join the fray and provide some competition. So far, seemingly none have panned out. Beats Music, which I was hoping might become Spotify’s #1 competitor, hasn’t fared particularly well, and there are rumors that Apple is going to shut down the platform as we currently know it, attempting to integrate the streaming service into iTunes sometime in 2015. While that will surely be interesting, for the time being Spotify reigns supreme.

A new challenger – Tidal - has entered the fray, with a key characteristic setting it apart from Spotify: sound quality. For the cost of $19.99 a month, you have access to a digital library of over 25 million songs in lossless FLAC formats, a marked improvement in sound quality over the standard 320 that Spotify streams at.

This seems like it is aimed at audiophiles at first glance – the higher price and FLAC format likely would only appeal to those who highly value sound quality. For most listeners, the difference between FLAC and 320 formats is negligible, and indeed it is only really noticeable when using superior audio equipment. At the same time, I’d say that sound quality is starting to enjoy more popular appeal – vinyl records, while by no means prevalent, are somewhat recently enjoying a spike in popularity, perhaps from those who decry the lack of tangible items in modern music distribution. Along with that, Beats headphones and other such “higher” quality headphones advertise their advanced sound quality over their competition. Moreover, Tidal seems to have some intriguing features that might explain why they think casual listeners would be willing to pay extra for the service – it has a substantial HD music video library, as well as a Shazam-esque feature that essentially does the same thing as the app, then provides the listener with the ability to stream the song right after discovering what it is.

I’m just not sure that will be enough to convince most listeners to make the switch from Spotify. Even looking at a video from Tidal themselves, one can see why some like myself might be wondering how much Tidal truly differentiates itself: 

The design and format of Tidal is very similar to that of Spotify, so much so that if I just quickly glanced at the video, at pretty much any point I’d probably assume it was about Spotify. While the design may change, Tidal will probably need to roar out of the gate in order to have a chance to make a dent in the streaming service industry. At any rate, I will probably test out the free trial and make my own decision about the platform. Tidal is available to anybody who would like to do the same.

The Not-So-Innocent Songs of Innocence

U2’s latest album, Songs of Innocence, is about par for the course with what one should expect a U2 album to sound like in 2014. By all accounts, there really should be nothing controversial about it at all. However, the manner in which the album was released ignited a firestorm of criticism levied both at the band and at Apple. The album was released on September 9th during an Apple event and appeared in all iTunes customers’ libraries and accounts. The album was available to be listened to by all users of iTunes, and could then be “downloaded” to their libraries proper. However, for most customers, the album was still visibly showing in their iTunes libraries even if they never actually downloaded it. 

Thinking of this on behalf of U2 and Apple, it was a very shrewd move for Apple to allow literally their entire customer base the ability to listen to the new U2 album, particularly since the prospects of this album doing as well as previous U2 records was very slim. U2 benefits simply from the exposure the move gives them, perhaps affirming their status as the most popular arena band in the world to be able to have the presence to pull off a move like this, and Apple gains exposure for iTunes and the ability to team up with a hugely successful band.

There is a certain presumptuousness to the move, however. Simply put, many did not want a new U2 album. Some music fans, like myself, have a rather extensive, curated iTunes playlist, and the thought of Apple forcibly placing one of their albums in my account is a rather annoying concept. I likely would have listened anyway, as I am a fan of some of U2’s older records, but why make that listen seem almost mandatory? Why not just make the album free to be streamed at one’s leisure in the iTunes Store? I also think the move is rather unnecessary and sort of unfair to less established artists. U2 is not a band that desperately needed everyone to listen to their album. Their tours alone make an absolutely absurd amount of money, to the point that their albums are almost supporting their tours rather than the other way around. There are bands much more desperate to be heard than U2, whose hits are still played on the radio to such an extent that they probably never need to record another note of music again and still make a very healthy living out of just performance royalties. My main problem with the move is that it doesn’t really seem to serve the music itself at all. It only serves U2, the “Biggest Band in the World”. In all of the discussion I have read about their new album, very little of it has been devoted to talking about the music. When Radiohead released In Rainbows, with its pay-what-you-want distribution method, the stunt itself gained plenty of attention, but it all served to emphasize the album itself. With U2, they could have released a whole album of cat sounds, and it wouldn’t have mattered. They were only concerned with making sure everyone who didn’t know who they were recognized their presence. It’s a rather invasive method of distribution, and while I don’t think U2’s intent was necessarily malicious, it is not a model that I think will prove to be successful.

Live Events Review: Timucua White House & Spill

Recently, I attended a performance at the Timucua White House in Orlando, a performance arts non-profit venue that was one of the more unique and intimate concert experiences I’ve had in a while. The first thing I noticed upon arriving was that I was greatly underdressed, and I wasn’t quite expecting many of the attendees to bring wine and food to the event. While it caught me off guard, this close-knit nature of the Timucua community really added to my enjoyment of the experience, even if I felt a little out of place as I could have been the youngest member of the audience (23 years old). The venue is tiny, and even though my friends and I arrived earlier than plenty of those who attended, we still had to sit up on the balcony level in order to find seats. The performance itself was excellent, as Ricardo Filipo played traditional Brazilian acoustic guitar compositions, in a genre known as chorinho. The intimate nature of the performance and the soothing sounds of his take on classic compositions, such as those from Antonio Carlos Jobim, made the experience almost hypnotizing for the viewer. Apparently, there was supposed to be a vocalist accompanying Filipo, and to be perfectly honest, it probably would have helped the performance some. It started to get just a little bit stagnant during the middle part of his set, but he saved what I would consider his best performances for his last few songs, and it brought me back into the show again. Overall, it was a positive experience, even though I felt a little bit like a fish out of water in terms of the demographic of most of the attendees. It was certainly one of the more odd venues I’ve been to, but I love the idea behind having a venue such as the White House. It’s nice to know that there is a strong arts community in the Orlando region, something I, as someone new to Florida, didn’t notice at first.

There are a few improvements that I could think of, however. Of course, the limitations of the White House venue are very apparent. Seating is tough to acquire if you do not arrive plenty of time in advance (although I always attempt to arrive at live events early), and the planning of the seating itself could use some refinement. The top balcony is supposed to be a non-food-or-drink zone, but audience members nonetheless brought their food and drink to the top level, as they almost didn’t have a choice in terms of there being anywhere else to go. The event became rather crowded, leaving my friends and I with little personal space, which is usually fine at concerts, but in an intimate setting like this, it can become difficult at times to be fully absorbed into the performance as you become too aware of the movements and actions of those around you. Perhaps some new seat arrangement is needed, or even the possibly necessary evil of cutting off the number of attendees allowed inside at a lower number, although I understand why that wouldn’t be a very attractive option for those running the venue. Another possible improvement would be a more clear description of where the location of the event is, as even putting the address in my GPS only brought me near the location, which left my friends and I temporarily at a loss as to where to go, eventually finding the White House itself mostly by luck. The biggest improvement, however, would have to be advertising. There is virtually no possible way that I would have ever heard of Timucua had it not been a class requirement, and I’m willing to bet that goes for just about everyone else that takes the class. While the demographic is clearly aimed at an older audience than myself, I’m also willing to bet that a good chunk of that audience are people who go repeatedly, maybe even outnumbering the amount of new arrivals every performance. While it doesn’t hurt to have a built-in community, trying to draw in new audience members (the advertisements don’t even have to be aimed at college-age audiences) will only better serve to increase the exposure of this hidden treasure.

Another event I’ve been to recently is a show by Clint Stewart, a local singer/guitarist who played at Spill, a bar in Winter Springs. The atmosphere at Spill was less formal than Timucua, but most people there were still relatively well dressed. There were more audience members close to my age at Spill, but the majority were still of the older variety. The bar itself isn’t necessarily geared towards college-age crowds, focusing on wine, cheese, and craft brews. Still, the atmosphere was much looser and relaxed than Timucua, as the performance, while clearly standing out from the rest of the noise, didn’t have to be spectacular, as audience members weren’t as “forced” to pay attention at a bar as they would be at a performance venue. The performance itself, however, was still very well done, with Stewart providing acoustic renditions of rock songs from the ‘60s through the ‘90s. The sheer number of songs he knew how to play was impressive, and he actually took a few requests from the crowd. His playing ability is high, which makes sense because of his other occupation as a guitar instructor, which I found out through receiving his business card. A fun, affable performer, Clint’s music added to the loose atmosphere and culminated in an enjoyable night out.

There are a few improvements I could think of, the first being some changes to the venue itself. The performance was done inside, which is relatively small and cramped compared to most bars in the area, despite having a seating area outside of the bar. I think they should consider opening the outside doors, which give a decent view of performances inside the bar, in order to expand seating, because as it was I could see it becoming quite hectic on busier nights. I wouldn’t suggest having the performance itself outside due to Florida heat, but during non-summer months it might remain an option. Another improvement could be signs placed around the area of Spill. I pass by the bar all the time, and it is easy to do so without even noticing the place is there. Because of the small size of the bar, I didn’t imagine previously that performances would be hosted there, but if I had it is likely that I would have checked out the place much sooner. Another fix could be an increased focus on advertising in the area, just focused on residents near the bar itself, as it could help Spill stand out from the myriad other bars in the area, and also bring in younger audiences.

Reflections on Simon Sinek's TED Talk

A brand that I currently believe embodies the “why, how, what” format discussed in Simon Sinek's interesting TED talk is Spotify. While its platform itself is revolutionary in terms of the trend it helped set for the music industry going forward, I wouldn’t say that’s the reason it’s becoming so ubiquitous. Spotify’s slogan is “music for every moment,” and it appears that this is the “why” that informs what they do. They don’t just want to be a streaming service. Grooveshark is a streaming service, and it is ever so slowly falling into irrelevancy. Spotify wants to provide the soundtrack to your life, and it just so happens that they have a user-friendly streaming service that does so. By doing this, they made Spotify seem more important than what it actually is (even if the technology and music library itself is very significant), and the hype level before Spotify reached the United States was very high.

In terms of the law of diffusion of innovation, I fall under different categories as a consumer depending on the kind of item or service being offered. If it is music related, I’m usually either an early adopter or early majority. Beats Music, a competitor to Spotify, is one such example. I was intrigued by its focus on music curation and its bold claims, and I made sure to download the free trial the day it came out. I still have a subscription to Beats Music because I enjoy the interface and the various listening options it provides. With other technology, however, I normally fall under the late majority grouping. For instance, a few of my friends have been trying to convince me to switch from an iPhone to a Samsung Galaxy for quite a while, and I only finally made the switch around holiday season last year, as my iPhone was starting to malfunction. I was mulling making the switch long before that point, but I only finally did so out of needing a phone that works and general iPhone fatigue.

1 Million Cups: Live Music Tutor

The 1 Million Cups video presentation that I chose to write about is Live Music Tutor, which can be found here. The company itself is an online music tutor interface that acts as a sort of hub for tutors and students alike. The service is free, although students do have to pay for lessons/classes. The main draw is that it has superior quality to other platforms in terms of its audio/video feeds and allows for potential students to take classes at their leisure. It contains a social media component that brings everybody together, so that one can find tutors that specialize in a certain instrument or genre and read their profile to determine if it would be a good fit. One can also apply to be a tutor, with the application going through a background check and other processes to determine eligibility.

The presentation was mostly done well, although there were a few facets that could be improved upon. The video that was played before the speaker came on was effective and professionally done, and while it didn’t get into any specifics in a monetary sense, it laid the groundwork for the presentation. The presenter did mostly fine in terms of his manner of speaking. It’s clear he’s not a charismatic public speaker, and despite an over-reliance of “ums”, he managed to get his points across clearly. My main problem is that they didn’t reveal the exact prices – or at least a range – of how much a normal tutor would cost, which makes me think that it could be expensive. I feel like they needed a more in-depth breakdown of their revenue streams, and in terms of the “celebrity” lessons that they touted, a brief list of which celebrities they featured or will feature would have been nice. Still, I like the idea of Live Music Tutor, as I feel it has the potential to be something more with a little refinement. One of the audience members who asked a question alluded to something like this, but I think that if they staged some events, such as an online “concert” performed by students who have successfully used the program, they would have strong marketing tools to use and show people how effective Live Music Tutor can be. Also, the potential of the technology that they utilize, supposedly superior to Skype and similar platforms, could allow for the company to either expand into other avenues or sell the technology itself, which might be an effective swaying point to entice investors. Overall, I was impressed with the ideas and ambitions of Live Music Tutor, and I’m interested to see how well they fare in the future.

Negotiation Tactics in Entertainment Business

This video, which focuses on the skills needed to successfully negotiate in job searches/interviews, gave me lots of great tips on something that I will need to apply to my own life once I graduate from Full Sail, and possibly even before that date. The video focuses on four different areas. The first is to “negotiate for a seat at the table,” meaning that you first need to schedule the interview before anything can happen. In the video, they emphasize being creative in presenting yourself, and also to position yourself in a way that gives you a higher value. The second area is to “negotiate for yourself,” which means that you need to set aside any previous frustrations with respect to your job search and convince (or negotiate) with yourself so that you feel that you are worthy and walk in to an interview with your head held high. The third is personal differentiation. They emphasize challenging the interviewer in some way, either by suggestion things to them about the company or work that you can perform, and by asking questions. The fourth is negotiating your job package, particularly salary. This is very tricky, as the person who mentions a number first usually “loses” in that the next person can react to that number. If you say a number that’s lower than the interviewer was willing to give you, he/she will probably settle on the lower number. They stress that you need to put yourself in the best possible position. Research the job beforehand and don’t undersell your abilities.

Another video I watched nicely detailed plenty of general negotiation skills that I will need to apply to my own career, and even in day-to-day exchanges. Emphasis is put on the belief that “everything is negotiable,” meaning that you can always ask your way to success by continually trying to reach the best deal for yourself. For instance, if you are buying a car, it is important to try to get the sellers to lower the price. Often, most people are willing to do so. The video also ties in with understanding underlying interests by telling the viewer to focus on “what you really want”. An interesting tactic was that of “bracketing,” where you ask for double (or at least some amount more) of what you actually want. The point is that the other negotiating side will often attempt to dwindle that down, often reaching the number that you were trying to obtain the entire time.

I also viewed a podcast that detailed how to come across well to those you are negotiating with. The podcast stressed likeability, such as calling the other side “counterparty” instead of “opponent”, as few negotiators respond well to bullying or excessive pressure. Something I thought was interesting was the idea that you should mimic the other person’s body language to better relate to them and give yourself a better chance of working toward a good result. Instead of focusing on what you want, focus on what the other side wants and how you can give it to them, often by presenting options. If you can focus on doing this and let the other side know that you are doing all you could to provide for their wants, they are likely to do the same for you.