Did Steve Jobs kill the music industry? That’s the question on many people’s lips since rock star Jon Bon Jovi accused the Apple boss of personally destroying the music industry.Bon Jovi centers his criticism on how he believes music downloading has robbed young people of what he calls the “beauty of buying an album”. “Kids today have missed the beauty of taking your pocket money and making a decision based on the jacket (封面), not knowing what the record sounded like,” he said.
But far from killing the industry, many young people today think Jobs has been a blessing (带来幸运的人), offering you instant, and selective access to a whole world of music.
Keith Staskiewicz at Enthertainment Weekly speaks for the feelings of many music lovers. He believes listening to MP3s rather than records or CDs “just save money” and doesn’t “remove the sense of discovery they get from new music”. Staskiewicz also argues that it’s wrong to blame Jobs and Apple for destroying anything. “Change is just part of the business,” Staskiewicz said. “No doubt in 50 years, Justin Bieber will complain about how kids don’t listen to ipods anymore.”
For now, though, it appears that music downloading is set to continue for the near future.
According to Summer Redstone, chairman of media company Viacom, iTunes has “resurrected(复兴) the music industry by creating a legal, affordable purchasing system for fans”.
But recent surveys suggested that, despite the “legalizing(合法化)” of music downloading through sites like iTunes, young people are still choosing to download music illegally. A report by Jupiter Research suggested that illegal downloading sites are used three times as much as legal ones. The problem, according to its analyst Mark Mulligan, is how today’s youth grow up viewing music as something they can get for free.
He said, “Unless the musci industry can shift these consumers while they are young away from free consumption to paid music formats(格式), they may never develop music purchasing behavior and the recording industry could suffer long-term harm.”
小题1:Which one is TRUE about young people nowadays?
A．They are music lovers and are willing to save money to enjoy music.
B．The majority of them download music through legal sites like iTunes.
C．They are most likely to go back to the store to buy albums in the near future.
D．They are robbed of the change of enjoying music by Apple.小题2:According to Mark Mulligan, the best solution to the problem of illegal music downloading is to_______.
A．legalize music downloading through sites like iTunes
B．help young people get used to paying for music
C．offer young people instant and selective access to a variety of music
D．create an affordable purchasing system for fans小题3:What is the main point of the article?
A．How Steve Jobs and Apple destroyed the music industry.
B．Why young people prefer downloading music to buying albums.
C．The problem of illegal downloading of music.
D．Different opinions on effects of music downloading.
