The impact of AI on the music industry
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already prominent in all our lives. AI and machine learning-enabled technologies are used in medicine, transportation, robotics, science, education, the military, surveillance, finance and regulation, agriculture, entertainment, retail, customer service, manufacturing, and our lives, like ChatGPT. for text creation based on large language databases.
AI use in the Music Industry is inevitable, although some see this as encroaching on creativity in what a person creates and what is artificially created.
The music industry has seen an increase AI software used in music creation and production.
The evolution of sound chips in consoles and handhelds.
Sound chips in game consoles are key to the overall game experience.
Early sound chip from Atari The Pokey released for the Atari had four sound channels used in games such as Centipede, Missile Command, Asteroids Deluxe, and Gauntlet.
The release of the AY-3-8910 was only a five-channel sound chip, but due to its low cost, it was a significant step and was used on game consoles from Intellivision and, notably, the ZX Spectrum and PCs from Apple.
The Ricoh 2A03, released in 1983, was used in the Nintendo NES. It was part of the main CPU and had five five-channel channels, separated into two APUs (Audio Processing Units).
The YM3812, released in 1985, was not used in home game consoles but was seen in sound cards on the PC, including the Sound Blaster and Arcade machines. This had nine sound channels and was seen as a significant improvement over the previous sound chip, but this showed an advancement in sound chip capabilities.
Copyright in music and its impact on artists/labels.
Copyright is essential for most works, including books, media, and music. It ensures the artists have control over the music they create and the money/revenue they receive
The copyright of the tracks recorded is seen by some as controversial as the label holds the copyright of the track, and artists are looking for more control of their music, which includes distribution, especially to streaming platforms. The rise of streaming platforms has added a new layer of complexity to the copyright debate, as artists often feel they have limited say and visibility in these digital spaces.