Blockchain, and how MP3s changed the world, a bit...

I want to talk about MP3s for a minute...

Back when first stated college I got a tip on an amazing new technology called MP3. Like everyone from my era, I drove around with a gigantic Case Logic CD wallet in my car, each of those CDs having about a dozen songs or so. I put over 400 songs on my first MP3 CD; I was hooked...

Back then the prevailing idea was that the music industry was toast. No record label was going to survive this. Everything was going to be upended, and we'd enter a completely democratic and commoditized era of music in which consumers interacted with and compensated artist directly.

Twenty-some years later, some of that has happened, and some of it hasn't. I think it' s important to look at the expectations back then vs the reality now. The reality is that a lot of recording labels and music industry stalwarts -did- get eaten for lunch, but it was mostly the ones who fought, or ignored the change. Some labels got it, and the ones that did were rewarded beyond their wildest dreams. New players jumped in the market (iTunes) and created music and content distribution empires that rivaled any member of the 'old guard'.

Today the effect can be summed up quite simply. When I was growing up, it was a totally valid and common question to ask someone "what kind of music do you listen to?" Have you ever stopped to think what a stupid question this is today? Who listens to just ONE kind of music anymore???

I try to keep this all in context in the blockchain world. Yeah, this thing is a tidal wave of disruption that's about to hit but the effect 20 years later is going to be a blend of old and new. Most major Wall St. banks won't get it, and may end up going away. But one of two of them are going to get and will choose to embrace change rather than fight or ignore it. Those big players will become bigger than they've ever been, and they'll share the field of tomorrow with players they haven't met yet.

So where are you in all this? Where's your organization in all of this? Oh, and whatever happened to Case Logic? :)