How Glocalization is Changing the Music and Entertainment Industry
The rise of technology has led to the globalization of many industries, including music and entertainment. Now, the effects of a new concept called glocalization are being felt and changing the game. Glocalization is a term coined by sociologist Roland Robertson in 1995 and describes the intersection of globalization and localization. The effects of this trend are being felt across the music industry and beyond.
Impact of Glocalization on the Music Industry
For years, the biggest stars in music have been global sensations who sing in English. However, the rise of glocalization has enabled the proliferation of diverse local music that caters to different cultures and languages. Today, music fans are tuning in to local music from their own countries and regions rather than relying solely on global hits.
The effects of glocalization are being felt most strongly in countries such as South Korea, Sweden, and Germany, where homegrown artists and songs dominate the charts. For example, in Sweden, many of the top songs are performed in Swedish, signaling a shift towards more localized content. This trend is somewhat surprising given the traditional belief in globalization that suggested the flattening of the world and the homogenization of culture.
Factors Contributing to the Rise of Glocalization
One of the main reasons for the rise of glocalization is the borderlessness of digital streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. The democratization of music production and distribution enabled by these platforms has enabled more artists to produce and distribute their music worldwide.
Further, consumers today have moved away from linear, TV-style streaming platforms and now prefer interactive streaming. With interactive streaming, users can choose the content they want to listen to rather than simply receiving whatever is playing on the radio. In this way, glocalization is enabling more individualized music choices while simultaneously boosting the popularity of local artists and genres.
Finally, glocalization has led to increased diversity in the music industry. As more local artists gain prominence, the music industry as a whole is becoming more representative of diverse cultures and languages. This trend is consistent with broader societal trends towards diversity and inclusivity.
Impact of Glocalization on other Industries
The impact of glocalization is not limited to the music industry. Other attention-seeking industries are also experiencing the effects of this trend. Companies like Netflix, for example, are investing heavily in creating localized content hubs to attract more viewers.
Moreover, the rise of glocalization has broader societal implications. As people become more connected through digital platforms, they are also becoming more tribal. Sociologists describe this phenomenon as the “paradox of globalism,” where the world becomes more connected yet more divided at the same time. It remains to be seen how these trends will play out in the long run, and what implications they will have for businesses and governments alike.
Tackling the Challenges of Glocalization
Glocalization poses significant challenges for governments and businesses alike. One key challenge is how to regulate these global platforms that are now dominating the entertainment industry. Historically, governments have shied away from regulating entertainment media, preferring to let the market dictate what succeeds. However, with glocalization disrupting traditional market dynamics, it may be time to re-evaluate this approach.
Moreover, glocalization is challenging the dominance of the English language in the entertainment industry. For years, the English language has been a comparative advantage for both the US and the UK in the creative industries. However, as more local artists gain visibility and prominence, their native languages are also gaining popularity. This trend will undoubtedly lead to more opportunities for localized content, but it also has implications for the dominance of the English language more broadly.
Conclusion
The rise of glocalization is transforming the music and entertainment industry in exciting ways. By enabling the proliferation of diverse, localized content, glocalization is boosting the visibility of more artists and genres than ever before. At the same time, this trend is challenging the dominance of traditional industry players and forcing them to reckon with new market dynamics. As we move forward, businesses and governments will need to adapt to these changes in order to remain relevant and successful.
Summary
Glocalization is transforming the music industry by enabling more local artists and genres to gain visibility and prominence.
Borderless digital streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music are democratizing music production and distribution, making it easier for more artists to reach worldwide audiences.
Consumers now prefer interactive streaming platforms that enable them to choose their own content rather than relying on linear, TV-style programming.
The impact of glocalization is being felt outside of the music industry, with companies like Netflix investing in localized content hubs to attract more viewers.
Going forward, businesses and governments will need to adapt to the challenges posed by glocalization in order to remain relevant and successful in this changing landscape.
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The writer is the author of ‘Pivot: Eight Principles for Transforming Your Business in Times of Disruption’
Britain can proudly claim to be one of the world’s top four music exporters, along with the United States, Sweden and, most recently, South Korea. However, while we used to produce a global star most years, we haven’t produced a true global hit since Dua Lipa in 2017. What has changed? Glocalization: A tongue twister hybrid of globalization and localization, the ramifications of which will be felt for years to come in the music industry and beyond.
Remember how the more familiar globalization was supposed to work. Richer countries would exploit their first-mover advantage over poorer ones, making the world “flat,” or at least flatter, as global brands like McDonald’s and Starbucks settle into an increasingly homogenized.
In the arts, belief in this logic led distinctive markets like France to fear dominance by others and resort to a heavy hand. “exceptional culturemyQuota policies to protect their cultural industries in local media.
So far the theory. In practice, we are now learning that the world is not flat after all. In a recent paper, Chris Dalla Riva, and I discovered clear and startling evidence of the thriving of local music in each country on global streaming platforms, a dynamic that didn’t exist when neighborhood record stores and radio stations controlled what our radio picked up. attention. British artists may have dominated the UK charts last year, but German, French and Italian artists reigned supreme in their home markets, to name just three countries.
Additionally, local chart toppers are increasingly performing in their native languages. The charts in Sweden, an early adopter of streaming, were dominated by Swedes who performed in Swedish last year. A decade ago, neither the Swedes nor their language were in the majority.
Polish acts now dominate the Polish charts as well, although many are performing hip-hop, an American genre. Localization of artists, but globalization of the genre.
Which brings us back to glocalization, a term popularized by sociologist Roland Robertson in 1995. With remarkable foresight, Robertson posited that the proliferation of “ethnic” supermarkets in California was not flattening the world, but transforming it. the global into the local.
“Diversity sells,” Robertson proclaimed. He may have seen Koreans in Los Angeles’ Koreatown avoiding McDonald’s because they wanted to eat their own unique food with its connection to their culture and home.
Robertson died a year ago, but the glocalization of music breathes new life into his counterintuitive vision. On the supply side, borderless digital streaming has drastically reduced production and distribution costs, making investment in local music more profitable. On the demand side, consumers have rejected linear “one-to-many” streaming models like TV and radio (where you get what you get) in favor of interactive streaming on demand (where you choose what you want). what do you want).
The music industry was the first to suffer and the first to recover from digital disruption; sets the tone in the media. But other attention seekers, such as audiobooks, television, and movies, are also feeling the effects of glocalization. Netflix’s investment in the 22,000 square meter City of Contents in Madrid has made it the largest of its kind in Europe.
The consequences of all this go far beyond the means. Steve Boom, who runs Amazon’s many media offerings, concludes that the glocalization trend “seems consistent with the broader societal trend that as we become more global, we are also becoming more tribal.” The world is not flat, it seems, but fractured.
All this raises thorny questions for politicians. Streaming music and video has achieved a politically desirable result, national prominence, without government intervention. Ironically, these unregulated global markets have succeeded where regulated local radio and television markets have failed. If governments started regulating these streaming platforms, would glocalization reverse?
This brings us back to Great Britain and its English-speaking counterparts on the other side of the Atlantic. The English language has served as a comparative advantage for the US and UK in the creative industries for over a century. The rest of the world heard (and saw) our creative content made in our native language. Those days are over and will not return. Glocalization means that the English-speaking world will no longer have it so easy.
https://www.ft.com/content/308407e3-26a2-4ae8-a64e-3e4cb7eee9ab
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