31 Music, Technology and Copyright: The Makings and Shakings of a Global Industry Andrew Kirton INTRODUCTION Nowhere has debate about copyright been so publically animated than it has in relation to music since the end of the twentieth century. The rapid development and adoption of tech- nologies enabling the free sharing of music online sparked a debate that has seen copy- right laws, their articulation, and their enforcement in particular, receiving an unprecedented level of attention. In this con- text, critiques of copyright law and the socio- economic arrangements they support have proliferated. And yet, despite some signifi- cant challenges, established legal frame- works and the socio-economic arrangements and activities they support, have shown remarkable resilience. Despite all the initial hype regarding the impending demise of copyright and the emergence of alternative socio-economic arrangements for the pro- duction and circulation of music, copyright law remains in rude health. In fact, given recent legislative actions across the globe, we should recognize that copyright has become a more prominent feature of the music indus- try than ever before. This chapter offers an account of the relationship between the music industry and copyright law that may help us further understand and explain these recent developments. In accounting for recent developments in copyright law the chapter draws particular attention to the place of technology. One can- not fully understand the relationship between copyright law and music without also under- standing the place of technology. On the one hand, the development of the music industry represents the commercial appropriation of developing technical capacities to capture, store, reproduce and circulate music. On the other hand, wider appropriations of those same technical capacities have frequently presented challenges to established commercial interests and practices. In the twenty-first century more than ever, the seemingly paradoxical role of technological development has been clear to see. Established commercial actors have been working hard to exploit the opportunities that new digital and networking technologies have presented in terms of the marketing, promo- tion, distribution and retail of music online. At the same time these same technologies have afforded practices (namely unauthorized file- sharing) that directly challenge established commercial systems and logics. It is in relation to this particular dynamic that the development BK-SAGE-DAVID_HALBERT-140357-Chp31.indd 586 8/12/2014 9:25:21 PM