Have always wondered what it would take for an Apple, Microsoft or google (or Spotify with more money) to buy one of either the music big three or even movie studios? Apple certinaty has the money, as do google and Microsoft... would doing this even make sense? Would it make a difference in music or movie licensing?
Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon have all broken into TV/film production after being a distributor first, which is interesting since Amazon in particular has the capital and strategy to buy their way into a market (see: Twitch, Whole Foods) but opted to start from scratch here.
That jump seems harder to make with music, since artists don't typically sign exclusive distribution deals the way TV producers do (popular songs get played on every radio station, TV shows stick to one network at a time) so being a distributor doesn't give as much of a competitive advantage. Additionally, the article indicates that the big music labels prohibit Spotify, and probably other distributors, from getting too competitive with them.
On the other hand, Microsoft really wants people to pay more attention to the Xbox's multimedia capabilities and is probably less fettered by such agreements. I could see them pushing exclusive content as a strategic move, perhaps spinning off some IP from their games division.
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That jump seems harder to make with music, since artists don't typically sign exclusive distribution deals the way TV producers do (popular songs get played on every radio station, TV shows stick to one network at a time) so being a distributor doesn't give as much of a competitive advantage. Additionally, the article indicates that the big music labels prohibit Spotify, and probably other distributors, from getting too competitive with them.
On the other hand, Microsoft really wants people to pay more attention to the Xbox's multimedia capabilities and is probably less fettered by such agreements. I could see them pushing exclusive content as a strategic move, perhaps spinning off some IP from their games division.