EDITORIAL:
This week exactly 10 years ago, Napster was first released to the general public.  While at the time, many did not realize the impact that this little program would have, we are still seeing the wide sweeping effects that this simple program had on the music industry.
 
It’s hard to remember, but there was a time when people actually bought CDs.  A time when CD sales actually went up each month and people raced to the stores on Tuesdays to get the latest releases.  Then Napster came along.  While there is no denying that the program infringed on copyright and licensing laws, it’s often forgotten just how influential the program was on the industry and world we live in today.  So rather than beat a dead horse and discuss the legality of the program, we thought it would be more interesting to look at some of the widespread effects the program had.
 
The Rise of Broadband:
Had the program been introduced 3 or 4 years earlier it may have never been noticed, but in the late 90s many music fans were ditching their dial-up accounts and opting for broadband, making it feasible to download hundreds of songs in a short period of time.  The timing of the program’s release was perfect, as broadband became available in more areas people signed up, many of them just so they could use Napster.  Comcast and other cable giants reaped the benefits, making many of them the even larger power they are today.
 
Peer to Peer Revolution:
Perhaps what was most ingenious about Shawn Fanning’s program was that the more viral it was, the better it was.  As Napster gained more users, the library of songs to download grew larger, making it even more diverse and useful to music fans.  Legality issues aside, the concept of peer to peer file sharing on such a wide scale was an impressive achievement.
 
Apple’s Gain:
People like to point out the destruction that Napster left behind, with record labels bankrupt and the industry teetering on collapse, but consider where Apple would be if Napster never came along.  In the late 90’s Apple was far from the hip, in style electronics manufacturer they are today.  Struggling to keep their market share, Apple may not be the company they are today without iTunes, which was really a legal version of Napster.  Sure, there is no peer to peer element, but iTunes was launched as a legal alternative to downloading music online, and has helped make the company’s iPods so popular and basically re-launch the entire Apple brand.
 
Buying Music Digitally:
Without Napster, the MP3 might never have caught on to the general public.  While the record labels tried to just simply revise the CD format with the SACD and MiniDisk, Napster single handedly crushed all competitors and helped open up the general public to listening to music in a digital format.  Many were opposed to listening to music digitally when Napster first hit the scene, saying that they wanted their music on something tangible.  Never before had a tangible format been replaced with something digital, and many users were a bit opposed to the change, but after they saw how easy and convenient (and free) it was to download music they started to come around.  Without Napster, many never may have even considered buying music digitally.
 
Digital Distribution:
By making the MP3 a native format to music listeners, Napster changed the way music was distributed.  The independent music scene was given equal ground to the major labels, no longer requiring thousands of dollars to manufacture CDs.  Not only that, but the MP3 made it easy for fans to discover new bands, as music could be easily posted online.  In many ways, music sites like Alternative Addiction owe some of their success to the rise of the MP3 and ultimately, Napster.
 
While it’s not really an anniversary for Napster, as the new resurrected version of the software is a shell of its former self, no one can deny the effect that it’s had in the past 10 years.  So as you plug in your iPod today and enjoy your MP3 collection, consider that without Napster’s creation 10 years ago, you might still be dusting off that old DiscMan.

Napster and its logos appear courtesy of Best Buy Co., Inc.