Pete Townshend to Apple: Don’t be a ‘Digital Vampire’
The Who guitarist Pete Townshend has called on Apple to help the “dying record business” by supporting new talent, instead of bleeding musicians like a “digital vampire”.
Sign up for the Smarter Faster newsletter
A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people
What’s the Latest Development?
The Who guitarist Pete Townshend has called on Apple, and the wider digital music industry, to find ways to support instead of exploit new talent. Among his eight suggestions for how to help—instead of being a “digital vampire”—are to fufill some of the roles traditionally held by record labels, such as providing “creative nurture” and employing talent scouts.
What’s the Big Idea?
The music veteran also took issue with the popularity of of illegally downloading music, saying people “may as well come and steal my son’s bike while they’re at it”. Though musicians’ incomes have been eroded through illegal downloading, Townshend admitted that “a creative person would prefer their music to be stolen and enjoyed than ignored.”
Sign up for the Smarter Faster newsletter
A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people
