Ether Today, Gone Tomorrow: 21st Century Sound Recording Collection in Crisis

Abstract

Today’s music industry increasingly favors online-only, direct-to-consumer distribution. No longer can librarians expect to collect recordings on tangible media where first-sale doctrine applies. Instead, at an ever-increasing rate, librarians are discovering that music recordings are available only via such online distribution sites as iTunes or Amazon.com . These distributors require individual purchasers to agree to restrictive end-user license agreements (EULAs) that explicitly forbid institutional ownership and such core library functions as lending. What does this mean for the future of music libraries? The coauthors present an overview of an Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) funded project tasked with investigating the issue, and recommend a series of next steps designed to build our professional capacity toward addressing the challenge.

University Music Students’ Choice of Music Listening Sources: Use of Library Resources as Compared with Non-Academic Streaming Services

“…6 The drop-off of physical formats has been oppositely paralleled by the growth of digital music, and, for the first time in 2011, sales of online music outstripped those of all other types of assets. 7 This turning point marked the tipping of the scale from physical to digital media, and the gap between the two has continued to widen over time. At the close of 2019, despite a slight bump in the category of vinyl, physical album sales were down 20.9% from the previous year while consumption of digital music had increased by 32%.…”

“…1, 3, 4, 9, 10 RQ3: How does the level of convenience, such as access to equipment, affect music students' choice of listening sources? 7,9 RQ4: What is the impact, if any, of a students' specific program or year of study on their choice of listening sources? 11,12…”