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February 21, 2007, 03:03 PM ET
Why the Music Died
Following the announcement by Cdigix Inc. that it was getting out of the music business (The Chronicle, February 12), Larry Jacobson, the company's chief executive, has written an open letter to colleges and universities explaining why. In the letter, he says that college officials were finding only "moderate interest" among students for the free music Cdigix was providing. Faculty members, on the other hand, were particularly interested in online audio and video resources. Cdigix will focus its energy on providing academic resources in the coming months.
In addition, the letter says, the music industry has "failed to create a business structure that can satisfy market demands," in part because retailers have placed too many restrictions on online music services.
Today’s college students have grown up during the rise of illegal peer-to-peer services, and now there is an expectation that music should be free, that it should be available on multiple platforms, and that it should be easily transferred to their preferred portable device, including the iPod. These Internet-savvy consumers do not care for excessive rules being placed around the content they want, and until their needs have been addressed, the challenges of mass adoption will continue for a great many businesses.The entire Cdigix letter can be viewed on the company's Web site. --Dan Carnevale
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