The Music Industry & Synergy

Institutions & Audiences – The Music Industry

One of the vital aspects of the exam, synergy, so here are a few things to help.

This first piece is from a Media Studies book and it offers a case study of synergy in the music business. It’s a little dated now but will give you some ideas. Read it through and then apply to your own record label/artist and contemporary industry examples.

The music industry, technology and synergy (end of ch case study 257-267)

Next, check out this post from last year about Santigold’s use of interactive video technology. Here, you can explore synergy and technological convergence.

Then check out this post from last year. This should give some help.

Desperately Seeking Synergy

This article, from the Harvard Business School, states that sometimes,

The pursuit of synergy often distracts managers’ attention from the nuts and bolts of their businesses

Which means sometimes the company, or record company in our case, can get so caught up in the technological aspect of synergy that they lose attention on the actual product or brand.

They also say,

Sometimes, the synergy programs actually backfire, eroding customer relationships, damaging brands, or undermining employee morale. Simply put, many synergy efforts end up destroying value rather than creating it.

And they go to state

Most corporate executives, whether or not they have any special insight into synergy opportunities or aptitude for nurturing collaboration, feel they ought to be creating synergy.

Which means that some managers feel like they HAVE to become involved in synergy, even if the product doesn’t need it or even if it detracts from the actual product.

This is called the Synergy Bias.