OpenMusicMediaTO #2 Access vs. Ownership

OpenMusicMedia Toronto is a chance to get together on a semi-regular basis for drinks & conversation around the past, present and future intersection of music, media and digitalculture.

A Toronto version of the popular & influential OpenMusicMedia UK meetups organized by @haynes_dave & @jonaswoost

With 2010 fast approaching, it's definitely time for another OpenMusicMedia Toronto meetup. Building on the success of our inaugural meet in September, we are going to cover the ongoing discussion about access vs. ownership and what it means to the music fan, the artist, and of course the industry as a whole.

With music services such as Spotify, MOG, Last.fm, and Grooveshark (only to name a few) increasing in popularity due to their ease in delivering music content as a seamless experience across both desktop and mobile devices - does this spell the end for iTunes and the whole notion of actually needing to own content?

The Globe and Mail recently took a look at Spotify and what it means for both the traditional and new players within the music industry. We are experiencing a transformative change in business models and the way music is consumed. Will subscription streaming services be a sustainable model? Will consumers pay for a bundling deal (ISPs, telcos) that gives them access on their computers and more importantly, on their mobile devices? Are there times when ownership is important? What are main benefits of the streaming model? Without a doubt, music streaming is here to stay and will likely co-exist with download service for the foreseeable future.

We are proud to have Greg Nisbet (founder of Toronto music startup Mediazoic) join us. Greg's experience developing a real-time broadcast streaming platform and his work with various people in radio, the labels and technology will offer us a unique perspective as he kicks off the discussion for the evening.

Please visit our blog to check out all the details.You can also follow us on Twitter at @OMM_TO

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Josh (@3rdparty) and Gabe (@gcn1)