B-to-b growth: Chasing the inflection point

摘要

Ten years ago I worked in the music business just as the Internet began its disruptive influence. Music executives at the time made soothing statements at industry conferences that "there will always be retail stores for music." Unfortunately, the issue was not whether there would always be a music business; instead the issue was what would happen to investor returns as music shifted from retail to digital channels. The confidence music moguls had in 1996 had weakened by 1998 and, of course, the rest is history. The music industry plunged into sluggish CD format growth, widespread Napster-fueled piracy, increasing artist costs, expensive marketing, fragmented channels and customers with attention deficit disorder. By 2000, the music industry had been left for dead. Today, satellite radio, iPods, growing legal avenues for downloads and Web-based communities are driving music growth again.