The Shallows Agreement and Partial Disagreement with Nicholas Carrs Essay

The Shallows Agreement and Partial Disagreement with Nicholas Carrs Approach to Internet Privacy - Essay Example For purposes of this particular analysis, the author will analyze Nicholas Carr’s â€Å"The Shallows†. Rather than delving into it point by point agreement for rebuttal of Carr’s piece, this author will attempt to integrate the analysis based upon Carr’s of the means by which more and more websites such as Google and Facebook seek to track their online users and glean potentially harmful levels of personal preferences and surfing history. As a means of such an analysis, it is the hope of this author that the reader will be able to integrate with one of the most important issues that exists within the realm of technology during the current era; the right an expectation to privacy. Although it is always been a policy of firms seeking to maximize their profits to endeavor to gain valuable information with regards to their client base, the extent to which websites such as Facebook and Google have gone to extract this information from their users is unprecedented. One of the trade-offs to the readily available information and use of social networking that both of these sites, as well is a host of others, display is the facts that they provide lengthy, nuanced, and ultimately confusing privacy policies that are written in what can only be described as many pages of legalese (O’Brien & Torres 69). Naturally, such privacy policies are intended not towards protecting the privacy of the individual Web server; rather, they are designed to protect against any liabilities that the firm may incur based upon their otherwise unscrupulous gathering of information of their users. It is the belief of this particular researcher that such practices are highly unethical and represent breaches of consumer confidence that in any other industry would be taken as an affront to consumer privacy and respect. Unfortunately, the level to which government is willing to safeguard the users of these monolithic and highly lucrative firms are extraordinarily limited (Carr 105). Although it is beyond the scope of this analysis to offer an in-depth discussion of why this might be, it is the belief of this particular researcher that the line between industry and government is particularly blurred both with respect to Facebook and to Google. This blurring has not helped the consumer/web surfer whatsoever; rather, it has only helped these firms to further market their products and seek to gain valuable information with regards to the habits and preferences of the millions of individuals that use their services on a daily basis. In the past, cooperation between the government and private firms has rarely turned out to the overall benefits of the end consumer. Although s uch a situation is possible, the level and extent to which government is currently reliant and highly cooperative with the likes of Google, Facebook and others does not bode well for the right to privacy from the end user/consumer (Gilbert 8). Naturally, the key concern is not center necessarily upon the fact that Google and others are seeking to track and retain this information; rather, the key issue becomes what did they intend on doing with such information/how will they use it/for how long will they keep it and who ultimately has access to it? Recently, I was so troubled by the level to which so many websites sought to place tracking cookies on the computer that I downloaded an ad on to Mozilla Firefox which is called â€Å"Ghostery†

Crime Rates Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Crime Rates - Research Paper Example An in-depth analysis of counties in Texas that focus on these issues indicate that Texas’s crimes’ drop rate was due to an increase in the jail and prison populace. A rise in wealth and improved income led to the decrease of property crimes (Nachmias & Nachmias, 2004). Increased prison construction would not be cost-effective in Texas. This is due to the declining marginal returns of investing in prison construction, but direct interventions in improving the economy sectors and enhancing police operations would be more proactive. Ideally, most of the discussions in the article are based on assumptions rather than facts. The researcher gives possible reasons as to why crime rate is dropping but he does not answer how these attributes are connected to the crimes. He mentions variables such as demography, unemployment, prison expansion and the economy. It is hard to establish a relationship between the variables and the crimes due to lack of concrete proof to his suggestions. Hypothetically, unemployment is a particular clear case, but the principle can be expected to apply to several other explanations. A blend in heterogeneity of most local areas in social class, household structure, race and income among others can be causational to each other (Nachmias & Nachmias, 2004). The assurance of civil rights is grounded on inclusion; yet the massive difference imprisonment rates between Latinos, blacks and whites still stands as the ugliest reminder of nation’s history of segregation based on race. In the article, the researcher argues that the best way of understanding law and race in this twenty-first century is by understanding and appreciating the American federal system. Some of the things that need appreciation include, the system structures, political mobilization, legal authority and solutions to policy loop holes. In addition, the federal system serves as a vital and disregarded obstacle to more persistent and

Are Computers Really Intelligent?

Are Computers Really Intelligent? Are computers really intelligent? Computer Intelligence has been in hot debate since the 1950’s when Alan Turing invented the Turing Test. The argument over the years has taken two forms: strong AI versus weak AI:. That is, strong AI hypothesises that some forms of artificial intelligence can truly reason and solve problems, with computers having an element of self-awareness, but not necessarily exhibiting human-like thought processes. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strong_AI). While Weak AI argues that computers can only appear to think and are not actually conscious in the same way as human brains are. (http://www.philosophyonline.co.uk/pom/pom_functionalism_AI.htm). These areas of thinking cause fundamental questions to arise, such as: ‘Can a man-made artefact be conscious?’ and ‘What constitutes consciousness?’ Turing’s 1948 and 1950 papers followed the construction of universal logical computing machines, introducing the prospect that computers could be programmed to execute tasks which would be called intelligent when performed by humans.(Warner 1994: 118). Turing’s idea was to create an imitation-game on which to base the concept of a computer having its own intelligence. A man(A), and a woman (B), are separated from an interrogator, who has to decipher who is the man and who is the woman. As objective is to trick the interrogator, while B tries to help the interrogator in discovering the identities of the other two players.(Goldkind, 1987: 4). Turing asks the question: What will happen when a machine takes the part of A in this game? Will the interrogator decide wrongly as often when the game is played like this as he does when the game is played between a man and a woman?’ (Quoted from Goldkind 1987: 4). Turing’s test offered a simple means test for computer intelligence; one that neatly avoided dealing with the mind-body problem. (Millican, P.J.R., 1996: 11). The fact that Turings test did not introduce variables and was conducted in a controlled environment were just some of its shortfalls. Robert French, in his evaluation of the test in 1996, stated the following: ‘The philosophical claim translates elegantly into an operational definition of intelligence: whatever acts sufficiently intelligent is intelligent.’ However, as he perceived, the test failed to explore the fundamental areas of human cognition, and could be passed ‘only by things that have experienced the world as we have experienced it.’ He thus concluded that ‘the Test provides a guarantee not of intelligence but of culturally-oriented human intelligence.’ (Ibid : 12). Turing postulated that a machine would one day be created to pass his test and would thus be considered intelligent. However, as years of research have explored the complexities of the human brain, the pioneer scientists who promoted the idea of the ‘electronic brain’ have had to re-scale their ideals to create machines which assist human activity rather than challenge or equal our intelligence. John Searle, in his 1980 Chinese Room experiment argued that a computer could not be attributed with the intelligence of a human brain as the processes were too different. In an interview he describes his original experiment: Just imagine that youre the computer, and youre carrying out the steps in a program for something you dont understand. I dont understand Chinese, so I imagine Im locked in a room shuffling Chinese symbols according to a computer program, and I can give the right answers to the right questions in Chinese, but all the same, I dont understand Chinese. All Im doing is shuffling symbols. And now, and this is the crucial point: if I dont understand Chinese on the basis of implementing the program for understanding Chinese, then neither does any other digital computer on that basis because no computers got anything I dont have. (Free Inquiry 1998: 39). John Searle does not believe that consciousness can be reproduced to an equivalent of the human capacity. Instead, it is the biological processes which are responsible for our unique make-up. He says that ‘consciousness is a biological phenomenon like any other and ultimately our understanding out it is most likely to come through biological investigation’ (Searle, 1990 :58-59. Quoted from McCarthy, 2001, http://www-formal.stanford.edu/jmc/’). Considered this way it is indeed far fetched to think that the product of millions of years of biological adaptation can be equalled by the product of a few decades of human thinking. John McCarthy, Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at Stanford University advocates the potential for computational systems to reproduce a state of consciousness, viewing the latter as an ‘abstract phenomenon, currently best realized in biology,’ but arguing that consciousness can be realised by ‘causal systems of the righ t structure.’ (McCarthy, 2001, http://www-formal.stanford.edu/jmc/ ) The famous defeat of Garry Kasparov, the world chess champion, in 1997 by IBMs computer, Deep Blue, promoted a flurry of debate about whether Deep Blue could be considered as intelligent. When asked for his opinion, Herbert Simon, a Carnegie Mellon psychology professor who helped originate the fields of AI and computer chess in the 1950s, said it depended on the definition of intelligence used. AI uses two definitions for intelligence: What are the tasks, which when done by humans, lead us to impute intelligence? and What are the processes humans use to act intelligently? Measured against the first definition, Simon says, Deep Blue certainly is intelligent. (http://whyfiles.org/040chess/main3.html). According to the second definition he claims it partly qualifies.(Ibid). The trouble with the latter definition of intelligence is that scientists don’t as yet know exactly what mechanisms constitute consciousness. John McCarthy, Emeritus professor at Stanford University explains that intelligence is the ‘computational part of the ability to attain goals in the world.’ He emphasises that problems in AI arise as ‘we cannot yet characterise in general what computational procedures we want to call intelligent.’ (McCarthy 2003: 3). To date, computers can perform a good understanding of specific mechanisms through the running of certain programs; what McCarthy deems ‘somewhat intelligent.’ (McCarthy 2004: 3). Computing language has made leaps and bounds during the last century, from the first machine code to mnemonic ’words’ In the 90’s the so-called high-level languages were the type used for programming, with Fortran being the first compiler language. Considering the rapid progress of computer technology since it first began over a hundred years ago, it is likely that unforeseeable developments will occur over the next decade. A simulation of the human imagination might go a long way to convincing people of computer intelligence. However, many believe that it is unlikely that a machine will ever equal the intelligence of the being who created it. Arguably it is the way that computers process information and the speed with which they do it that constitutes its intelligence, thus causing computer performance to appear more impressive than it really is. Programs trace pathways at an amazing rate for example, each move in a game of chess, or each section of a maze can be completed almost instantly. Yet the relatively simple process of trying each potential path fails to impress once it’s realised. (Reed, 2003: 09). Thus, the intelligence is not in the computer, but in the program. For practical purposes, and certainly in the business world, the answer seems to be that if it seems to be intelligent, it doesnt matter whether it really is. (Reed 2003: 09). However, computational research will have a difficult task to explore simulation of, or emulation of, the areas of human cognition. Research continues into the relationship between the mathematical descriptions of human thought and computer thought, hoping to create an identical form.(Wagman, M., 1991: 2). Yet the limits of computer intelligence are still very much at the surface of the technology. In contrast, the flexibility of the human imagination that creates the computer can have little or no limitations. What does this mean for computer intelligence? It means that scientists need to go beyond the mechanisms of the human psyche, and perhaps beyond programming, if they are to identify a type of machine consciousness that would correlate with that of a human.. References Goldkind, J., 1987, Machines and Intelligence: A Critique of Arguments against the Possibility of Artificial Intelligence. New York: Greenwood Press Inquiry. Council for Democratic and Secular Humanism. Volume: 18. Issue: 4. . Page Number: 39+. McCarthy, J., 2001, ‘What is Artificial Intelligence?’ Available online from: ‘http://www-formal.stanford.edu/jmc/’ [Accessed 14/11/06] Millican, P.J.R., 1996, The Legacy of Alan Turing. (Volume1). Oxford: Clarendon Press Online Encyclopedia. Available online from: ‘http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strong_AI.’ [Accessed 17/11/06] Reed, F., 2003, ‘Artificial Intellect Really Thinking?’. The Washington Times. May 1, 2003. p. B09 Wagman, M., 1991, Artificial Intelligence and Human Cognition: A Theoretical Intercomparison of Two Realms of Intellect. New York: Prager Warner, J, 1994, From Writing to Computers. New York: Routledge URL’S ‘http://www.philosophyonline.co.uk/pom/pom_functionalism_AI.htm’ [Accessed 17/11/06] ‘http://whyfiles.org/040chess/main3.html’ [Accessed 14/11/06] Further Reading DeLancey, C., 2002, Passionate Engines: What Emotions Reveal about Mind and Artificial Intelligence. New York: Oxford University Press Wagman, M., 2000, Scientific Discovery Processes in Humans and Computers: Theory and Research in Psychology and Artificial Intelligence. Westport, CT: Praeger

Comparing Maya Angelous Graduation and Liliana Hekers The Stolen Part

Comparing Maya Angelou's Graduation and Liliana Heker's The Stolen Party    Maya Angelou's "Graduation" and Liliana Heker's "The Stolen Party" share a common theme. Each author demonstrates through young girls that life's experiences, especially as a child, teach important lessons. Although Angelou's "Graduation" and Heker's "The Stolen Party" share a distinct resemblance, they also differ. The main similarity is that Margaret from "Graduation" and Rosaura from "The Stolen Party" are both excited about a day that they consider special or important. Margaret's big day revolves around her graduation from the eighth grade at the Lafayette County Training School. Margaret and her entire family are so proud of her accomplishments and achievements. Margaret felt high aspirations for the future and high hopes of all her goals being attainable. Margaret brags: My work alone had awarded me a top place and I was going to be one of the first called in the graduating ceremonies. On the classroom blackboard, as well as on the bulletin board in the auditorium, there were blue stars and white stars and red stars. No absences, no tardiness, and my academic work was among the best of the year. I could say the preamble to the Constitution even faster than Bailey. (572)    Rosaura's big day revolves around a birthday party she was invited to by Luciana. Luciana is the daughter of Senora Ines. Senora Ines is a lady Rosaura's mother cleans for in the afternoons. Despite her mother's initial wishes, Rosaura was determined to attend Luciana's birthday party. Heker writes, "She wanted to go to that party more than anything else in the world. 'I'll die if I don't go' she [Rosaura] whispered" (614). Margaret and Ro... ...ade this little girl come to life with words. Margaret was so natural, so life-like, so truthful. Heker's "The Stolen Party" is a work of fiction and is told in third person. Although Rosaura seems realistic and believable, her character was not as fully revealed as Margaret's.    Margaret and Rosaura were both young girls living in environments where certain things or people were not accepted. Through childhood experiences both girls have learned substantial lessons about themselves and the way others view them that should remain with them the rest of their lives.    Works Cited Angelou, Maya. "Graduation." Literature for Composition. 4th Ed.   Sylvan Barnet et al. New York HarperCollins, 1996. 570-578. Hecker, Liliana. "The Stolen Party." Literature for Composition. 4th Ed. Sylvan Barnet et al. New York HarperCollins, 1996. 613-616.

Exam Study Guide Essay

The beneficial consequences that may result from the legalization of euthanasia as proposed by brock are the following: a. serve as an insurance policy- it comforts patients by allowing them to know that it is there if they need it b. respect the self determination of individuals c. provide a relief from prolonged suffering d. make a dignified death possible 2. In his article on VA euthanasia, Brock examines two broad lines of arguments against euthanasia: a. deontological b. utilitarian 3. People are generally opposed to killing because they have learned or been taught to think about it in negative terms. Killing is usually reported in the context of murder, not in the context of humanitarian service. 4. Allowing someone to die involves withholding intervention, when no cure is possible or withdrawing intervention because it is no longer able to cure a dying patient. 5. To the idea that active voluntary euthanasia is incompatible with a physician’s moral and professional commitment is to care for patients and protect life, Brock replies: the commitment to self determination and well being ought to be at the center of medical practice, not just preserving life. 6. To the objection that allowing euthanasia would undermine general confidence in health-care services providing optimal care for dying patients, Brock replies: There is no reason to fear that euthanasia is going to erode patients trust if only voluntary euthanasia is allowed. 7. Among the ethical considerations relating to genetic testing are the following: a. do parents have the right to be informed of all the results of a genetic test? b. does a person have a right to have children who are likely to be impaired? c. should public funds be used to pay for genetic esting when people are unable to pay? 8. Therapeutic sterilization is the termination of the ability to produce offspring if the mother’s life or mental health is in danger. 9. In the context of euthanasia, the slippery slope argument is the idea that it will eventually lead to a diminishing of our respect of life. 10. Abuses of laws permitting active euthanasia can be prevented by doing the following: a. make sure tha t it is the patient voluntarily making the decision to have it. b. make sure that there is no chance of recovery for the patient. c. he patient must feel that they are not being a burden to their family because of their illness. 11. Among the benefits of genetic testing are the following: a. improves the lives of the parents and at times, the child b. provides assistance for parents who wish to make rational decisions regarding their family planning 12. Ethical considerations with surrogate motherhood include the following: a. is it right to ask a surrogate mother to give up all rights to a baby she carried for nine months? b. potential court battles over custody of a child conceived outside of marriage. c. uture emotional distress when the child learns that they were deliberately taken away from their natural mother. 13. Extraordinary care means when caring for a comatose patient, one should include: B. CPR, mechanical breathing 14. The set of conditions that must be present to determine if a patient is an irreversible coma is known as the Harvard Criteria. 15. The care given to terminally ill patients that consist of comfort measures and symptom control is referred to as palliative care. 16. The Baby M case is an example of: C. problems encountered as a result of the use of a surrogate 7. An infertile couple who does not wish to adopt has the option of surrogate motherhood. 18. While the goal of therapeutic genetic interventions is to restore the patient to the best state of health as possible, the goal of nontherapeutic or enhancement genetic engineering is to improve on an otherwise healthy body. 19. A viable infant is one who is able to survive after birth. 20. Provide examples of ordinary versus extraordinary means used in the treatment of terminally ill: ordinary includes- treatment that is morally required, such as giving fluids and providing comfort measures. xtraordinary includes- procedures and treatments that are morally expendable, example: providing chemotherapy to a patient who has end stage cancer 21. The Karen Ann Quinlan case involved: C. removal of a respirator from a comatose patient 22. A type of settlement that allows people with terminal illnesses, such as AIDS, to obtain money from their insurance policies by selling them is called a viatical settlement. 23. The Karen Ann Quinlan case is an example of: C. withdrawing treatment 24. What are some of the measures to assess quality of life? a. general health b. physical function c. social function d. pain e. mental health 25. What measures does palliative care include? a. comfort measures b. symptom control for pain, shortness of breath, support therapy, etc. c. relief of pain and suffering d. make the end-of-life period a meaningful experience for the patient 26. Why did the surgeons attempt to separate conjoined twins Laden and Laleh Bijani when the chances of survival were apparently very slim? ecause he was persuaded to proceed with the operation based on medical evidence and the strong desire of the twins to be separated; he wanted to make sure they had their best chance. 27. What are the Kubler-ross’s five stages of dying? 1. Denial 2. Anger 3. Bargaining 4. Depression 5. Acceptance 28. People who are against euthanasia offer the following reasons: a. possibility of mistaken diagnosis b. doubt about how voluntary a patient’s choice is c. it dis torts the moral responsibility of doctors. The role of the doctor is to care for his patients, not to shorten their lives. 29. Genetic counseling involves investigation and counsel through interview and conferencing with prospective parents to determine: the risk of passing on a genetic disease to their offspring. 30. A surrogate mother is a woman who: a woman who is carrying the ovum of the wife or another woman who is unable to give birth, and the husband’s sperm to eventually birth a child- they are bound under contract to give up the child at birth to the couple they agreed to complete this with. Most are paid from $20-25,000 in medical expenses. 31. To the idea that active voluntary euthanasia is incompatible with the octor’s moral commitment to care for patients and protect life, Brock replies: the commitment to self determination and well being ought to be at the center of medical practice, not just preserving life. 32. For Rachels, the distinction between active and passive euthanasia often leads to decisions concerning life and death made on the conventional doctrine. 33. On the issue of euthanasia, Rachels argues that â€Å"letting die,† or â€Å"doing nothing,† is a form of passive euthanasia. 34. For James Rachels, the Standard View is wrong. If active euthanasia is sometimes permissible then passive euthanasia is also sometimes sometimes permissible.

Music Recording Industry

Music Recording INTRODUCTION For centuries man had dreamed of capturing the sounds and music of his environment by means of music recordings. The road to successful music recording had not been smooth until the derivation of the music recording industry. Since the inception of the music recording industry, the way in which music is produced, distributed, sold and consumed have greatly changed so also has popular music changed over time. These changes resulted from new technology which was invented between 1890 and 1900 and paved way for entry, which in turn has caused significant structural shocks within the industry.The Sound Recording Technology invention has not only changed the way we listen, but has also substantially reduced the cost of production, reproduction and distribution of the industry’s product to the very minimum especially within the past 5 years. Although technology seems to pose an obstacle to entry into the industry, recently, the main barrier to entry over the past years has been radio airplay because of the cost associated with informing consumers about the existence and the nature of products in the industry.Between 1900 and 1910, there was an integration of three large firms (Victor, Columbia and Edison) who controlled most audio-related products including playback devices and the audio products themselves and this served as a substantial barrier to entry. But it is possible for another technology of supply, high speed internet, might eventually offset this important barrier to new entrants into the industry.After 1910, the music recording industry became the center of controversy involving (1) alleged price fixing by the major firms in the industry and (2) massive alleged copyright infringement by consumers, in what amount to a free-for-all over economic rents. The clash between the firm and their consumers has erupted in legal open warfare, with the Federal Trade Commission and courts finding the major firms guilty of overchargi ng consumers by nearly half a billion dollars in a scheme that maintain artificially high prices, and the industry suing hundreds of consumers for copy right infringement according to Prof Peter J.Alexander in â€Å"Market Structure of the Domestic Music Recording Industry†. In 2003, The Business Week Online posted that, The Recording Association of America (RIAA), the trade association for the music recording industry, issued hundreds of subpoenas aimed at individual consumers whom they alleged to be copyright violators. MARKET STRUCTURE Number of Firms The market structure of the music recording industry is made of five large international and integrated firms.These firms are Vivendi Universal, Sony Corporation, Time warner, Emi Group and Bertelsmann AG. These firms exhibit number of characteristics including dating back as far as the twentieth century. Also, with the exception of Time Warner, all the firms have been sold and bought many times. Additionally, each firm excep t EMI is part of a larger media with particular interest in motion pictures, television, cable and book publishing, music publishing, production, manufacturing and distribution.The largest among these firms is the Vivendi Universal Music which was created in 1998 from two major French firms, Polygram and MCA. According to the Various Company Reports, represented by the table below, the Vivendi Universal Music is currently the largest music company in terms of market share and recorded music revenues. It owns the largest recorded music in the world, with over one million catalog of recorded music. Its operational activities include production, distribution and publishing of music as well as licensing of music copyrights.According to Prof Peter J. Alexander, in 2002, one out of every four compact disks sold worldwide was a Universal Music Group Product. Some of the Vivendi’s other media holdings include Universal studios (motion picture), USA Networks (television) and Houghton Mifflin (book publishing). Table 1. 1 Worldwide Conglomerate Revenues of the Major Firms, 2002 Firm Total Worldwide Revenue (In billions) |Vivendi Universal $60 Sony $57 Time Warner $41 Bertelsmann $18 EMI $0. 36 Source: Various Company Reports, 2002| Sony Corporation is a subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate and its operational activities include production of Sony compact disks, distribution of recorded music and also publishing music.Sony Corporation is a leading manufacturer of audio, video, communications, and information technology products for the consumer and professional markets. Its motion picture, television, computer entertainment, music and online businesses make Sony one of the most comprehensive entertainment and technology companies in the world. Other media of the Sony Corporation are the motion picture houses Columbia pictures and Tri-Star pictures. According to Andrew Herman, Sony Corporation became presence in the music record when it bought CBS in 1988. Berte lsmann is a German multi media corporation founded in 1835, based in Gutersloh Germany.It is the second largest global media conglomerate measured in terms of total revenue. Bertelsmann media holdings include books and magazine publishing, producing, manufacturing, and distribution of recorded music. It is also a major European television and radio broadcaster and content producer. Bertelsmann bought RCA in 1985, and that increased their interest in becoming a major presence in the music industry. Time warner is a US based conglomerate and it is the second largest cable provider in the USA. It produces, manufactures, publishes and distributes recorded music.Time Warner also controls the publishing rights of over one million music titles. Other media holding include Warner Brother (motion pictures), WB Network (television), HBO (television), Time Life (magazine) and Warner Books. EMI is a British conglomerate which also produces, manufactures, distributes and publishes recorded music . It is the second largest music publisher and comprises more than one hundred music label. The EMI Group also has a major publishing arm, EMI Music Publishing – also based in London with offices globally. It is the least diversified among the other firms.According to Pro J Peterson, recently, four of these giant firms have been in negotiation to merge their recording operations (Sony with Bertelsmann and EMI to acquire Time Warner recording business). In early 2004 Time Warner sold its Warner Music subsidiary to a new set of owners led by the Canadian Bronfman interests. Combinations between any of these firms would have led to more concentration in that field. Barriers of Entry Barriers to entry in the record industry are generally regarded as low. A number of independents have entered the market successfully over the last ten years.A number of artists signed to independent labels have featured in the singles and album charts. The Top 40 singles charts gained 540 new entran ts in the year ending September 1993, 84 of which were from independents. The Top 40 album charts gained 272 new entries over the same period, 42 of which were from independents according to the British report on recorded music. A small independent record company has few sunk costs since recording, manufacturing, distribution and marketing can all be contracted out to independent third parties. Many costs have come down in recent years.For example, recording equipment of reasonable quality can be purchased for a few hundred pounds, allowing initial recording to be done away from the studio. At the smallest end of the market a recording can be made in a home studio. The combination of rapidly changing consumer tastes and a pool of artistic talent in the UK provides opportunities for independents. Independents can compete against the majors in the signing of new artists in a number of ways. An independent may concentrate on a particular type of music and be better placed than a major to spot new talent and make contact with an artist.Artists may be more attracted to an independent that has a good reputation in their type of music than to a major (that is, they might be perceived as having more `street cred’). There appears to be a pool of people with experience of the record business that is willing to set up record companies, for example ex-artists, producers, artists’ managers or ex-employees of the majors. The reputation of these people may be sufficient to attract new artists. The independents often develop links with the majors.For example, if a new artist is successful but the independent cannot market the artist overseas, the independent may come to an arrangement with a major under which the artist’s recordings are licensed to the major, the artist is signed by the major, or the major takes some financial interest in the independent. Whatever the particular arrangements, there are likely to be benefits for both parties. The majors ar e interested in sharing in the A&R successes of the independents, while for their part the independents gain funds for further A&R.The risks to the artist of signing with an independent are reduced if this exit route is available. The option of outright sale to a major is also open to an independent. The major may be attracted by the existing artist roster, the back catalogue, the personnel or the name of the label. The possibility of a profitable exit from the market is an incentive for a new entrant The table below shows entrance of new firms to the music industry since 1983 Source: British 1994 report on recorded music Shares of the Market According to the BBC worldservice. om up to 90% of the global music market is accounted for by just five corporations: EMI Records, Sony, Vivendi Universal, Time Warner and BMG. Collectively, these corporations are known as ‘the Big Five’, and operate in all of the major music markets in the world. Each of the corporations maintain s their headquarters in the US, the largest of the world’s markets. Of the Big Five, Vivendi Universal is the largest, with 29% of the market share and wholly owned record operations or licensees in 63 countries. Its nearest rival is AOL Time Warner, with 15. 9% of the market share.Each of the corporations operates in a variety of fields beyond recorded music, incorporating publishing, electronics and telecommunications, thus extending their influence to cover more markets within the global entertainment industry. In achieving their dominance in music sales, the Big Five each own a large portfolio of labels, from formerly independent labels to large regional operators in different territories. The biggest exception to their domination of the market is in India, where the large film music market has so far defied these corporations.Africa has also proved to be a difficult market for the American-owned corporations, largely because the economic situation outside South Africa me ans a lack of profitable markets. In South Africa, Gallo Records is one of the biggest record labels, not only because of its representation of African music, but also from being exclusive licensee for Warner Music International. The Big Five are not always in competition with each other, and it is in their best interests to act together at times. EMI is the sole licensee of BMG material in Greece.A press material in May 2002 stressed that the deal would work well for both companies, with EMI licensing some important international artists, and BMG’s Greek artists being looked after by a company with a much bigger local presence. Co-operation and partnerships, then, can yield not only greater profits, but maintain their status as corporate giants. Many well-known smaller labels are in fact owned by one of the Big Five companies. While labels are often started by entrepreneurs, the dominance of the major labels makes large scale success difficult for these firms.And should they achieve a high degree of success, they excite to the predatory instincts of the large corporations. This gives the major labels a wider ranging repertoire in different geographical markets and musical genres. –ju While small labels will continue to exist, they become increasingly unable to grow without becoming part of one of the Big Five companies. This pattern looks set to continue into the future as the larger companies continue their strategy of acquisition, and potentially merge amongst themselves in an attempt to dominate the market even further.