Before iPhones, tablets and laptops, people had to buy hard copies like CDs, records and even vinyl. According to Cornell University, the average cost of a paper CD is $13.99 if purchased a week after the release date, and if purchased on the release date it averages $13.99. $9.99. Before the Internet, the music industry was governed by the fact that there were only 6 major labels for 60 years, responsible for all distribution and promotion of recorded music. There were five main roles to fulfill in order to make a profit as a live music process. The roles are performer, personal manager, talent agent, promoter and venue operator. The Internet has completely changed the perspective of the music industry. Businessweek.com states that the impact of the Internet on the music industry is that music industry sales have dropped from $14 billion to $10 billion. The information superhighway has changed the entire perspective of the landscape by completely destroying the already established distribution system. Intellectual property is the most questioned aspect of recent changes in the digital age in the music industry. Intellectual property is intellectual property (IP) which refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; drawings; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. Intellectual property is protected by law, for example, by patents, copyrights and trademarks, which allow individuals to gain recognition or financial advantage from what they invent or create. (WIPO) Which in simple terms means that intellectual property means that a person can have rights over the creations of their ideas like inventions, artistic and written works, etc. for the music industry, copy writing is more focused on...... . middle of paper ......tion of the music industry in the post-Internet era. Thesis. Claremont McKenna College, 2012. Np: np, nd Print. MacMillan, Douglas. "The Music Industry's New Internet Problem." Bloomberg Business Week. Bloomberg, March 6, 2009. Web. April 18, 2014.A, N. /. “Networks”. The decline in physical music sales. Cornell University, November 17, 2012. Web. April 18, 2014.Office, Intellectual Property. "Music." Intellectual Property Office. Intellectual Property Office, March 20, 2013. Web. April 18, 2014. World Intellectual Property Organization. “World Intellectual Property Organization.” What is intellectual property? WIPO, April 26, 2001. Web. April 17, 2014.Parikh, Mihir. “The music industry in the digital world: waves of change. » Thesis. Polytechnic University, 1999. The music industry in the digital world: waves of change. Docunator.com, August 1, 1999. Web. April 18. 2014.