Hyojung Sun | University of York (original) (raw)

Papers by Hyojung Sun

Routledge eBooks, Apr 19, 2018

Information, Communication & Society, Mar 18, 2017

Social Science Research Network, 2021

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2019

Creative Industries Journal, 2019

The rise of P2P technology produced a prediction that ubiquitous access to an unlimited choice of... more The rise of P2P technology produced a prediction that ubiquitous access to an unlimited choice of music, known as the Celestial Jukebox, would loosen the market control and hence bring about cultural diversity in the market. As the streaming music business grows, however, this celebrated musical experience is giving rise to a resurgence of market control. Underlying the difference between the prediction and the reality is the unexpected problem that has arisen in the process of technological development. This article unravels this missing link by demonstrating the underlying dynamics involved in the innovation process through which digital technologies are applied, consumed, and used in the music business.

With the rise of peer-to-peer software like Napster, many predicted that the digitalisation, shar... more With the rise of peer-to-peer software like Napster, many predicted that the digitalisation, sharing and dematerialisation of music would bring a radical transformation within the recording industry. This opened up a period of controversy and uncertainty in which competing visions were articulated of technology-induced change, markedly polarised between utopian and dystopian accounts with no clear view of ways forwards. A series of moves followed as various players sought to valorise that I have friends upon whom to call. The greatest gratitude goes to Jeong-In Park, my daughter, who grew with my thesis, but turned out so much better despite being paid less attention than the thesis. This thesis is dedicated to her. I love you, Jeong-In. I

This chapter sets out the theoretical background to the research. It critically examines the exis... more This chapter sets out the theoretical background to the research. It critically examines the existing approaches in understanding disruptive technologies and their limitations. I then discuss the major theoretical perspectives that guided this research—Social Shaping of Technology (“SST”) (MacKenzie and Wajcman in The Social Shaping of Technology: How the Refrigerator Got Its Hum, Open University Press, Milton Keynes, 1985; Williams and Edge in Research Policy 25:865, 1996) and its extension into Social Learning in Technological Innovation (“SLTI”) (Sorensen in Learning Technology, Constructing Culture: Socio-technical Change as Social Learning, University of Trondheim, Trondheim, 1996; Williams et al. in Social Learning in Technological Innovation: Experimenting with Information and Communication Technologies, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, 2005)—and explain why they serve as valuable frameworks in understanding digital disruption in the recording industry. Drawing upon these theoretica...

This chapter follows on from the previous chapter’s discussion and provides an in-depth analysis ... more This chapter follows on from the previous chapter’s discussion and provides an in-depth analysis of how Spotify found a solution to the digital recording industry’s financial woe persisted since Napster. It examines how this successful legitimate digital music service innovation arose in the least likely place, Sweden, the hotbed of piracy, and addresses major attributes that brought victory to Spotify over the then seemingly unflinching popularity of P2P file-sharing. I continue the discussion on the changing dynamics brought by Spotify and some of the concerns emerging around this new digital music consumption platform.

The purpose of this Working Paper is to pass on our experience of research on song titles and pro... more The purpose of this Working Paper is to pass on our experience of research on song titles and product cycles in UK music publishing which was intended to provide evidence of the impact of copyright in a market. The Working Paper relates to the article ‘Economics of Music Publishing: Copyright and the Market’, published in the Journal of Cultural Economics, 2016. The context of the research was a project on copyright and business models in music publishing that was part of the AHRC funded project: the ‘Economic Survival in a Long Established Creative Industry: Strategies, Business Models and Copyright in Music Publishing’. By collecting data on the product cycles of a sample of long-lasting song titles and trying to establish changes in the product cycle as the copyright regime changed we had hoped to produce empirical evidence on the effect changes in the copyright regime, such as term extension, or to those in copyright management organisations. For a variety of reasons, th...

Digital Revolution Tamed

This chapter analyses the evolution of digital distribution networks since Napster. It first addr... more This chapter analyses the evolution of digital distribution networks since Napster. It first addresses how iTunes laid the foundation of the digital distribution infrastructure and marked the beginning of reintermediation, leading to an emergence of new intermediaries in the market. The chapter then moves on to a discussion on the unprecedented opportunities presented in digital music distribution networks and the unexpected issues bringing challenges for this potential to be fully realised in the market. To recount how both the continuity and discontinuity are converged, I then broaden the perspective and address the changing dynamics unfolding in four major networks—creativity, reproduction, distribution/promotion and consumption.

Digital Revolution Tamed

This final chapter summarises the central theme and arguments of this book. It discusses how this... more This final chapter summarises the central theme and arguments of this book. It discusses how this book is recontextualising the knowledge and understanding of digital disruption in the recording industry and how it overcomes previous linear and simplistic accounts. I look to readdress the complicated process of digital music valorisation where the protracted nature of the digital music business impacting upon innovation and explain the reasons behind why the digital revolution has been tamed. Lastly, the chapter reviews the major points explored throughout the book to explode the myth surrounding digital revolution in the digital recording industry.

Digital Revolution Tamed

This chapter examines the dominant discourses surrounding the digital recording industry. It firs... more This chapter examines the dominant discourses surrounding the digital recording industry. It first demonstrates the evolution of the recording industry in the context of technological advances, intellectual property (IP) and organisational practices. I then extend the view to the perspective of the entire network of the recording industry and discuss a broader range of settings for innovation and a wider array of players involved in the recording industry in pre-digital settings. This chapter finishes by outlining existing views on the digitalisation of music in three dimensions: the techno-centric dichotomy in understanding the digital recording industry, the discourse of P2P technology’s impact on the market and the technological trajectory of P2P technology that has deviated from the prediction.

Digital Revolution Tamed

Following on the previous discussion, this chapter provides an in-depth empirical investigation o... more Following on the previous discussion, this chapter provides an in-depth empirical investigation on INgrooves and addresses the reintermediation process that took place on the digital music distribution networks. It details INgrooves’ innovation process that parallels the process; digital music distribution networks have become reintermediated. Tracing the history from the beginning of the business sparked by iTunes to the partnership with Universal Music Group, this chapter illustrates the process of emergence of new intermediaries and the resurgence of the market control. The detailed process involved in reintermediating distribution infrastructure will reveal the missing link between the prediction and what has happened in the digital music distribution networks.

Acta Physiologica, 2013

Next month, it will be 50 years since Bob Dylan released this song. Conspiracy theories have it t... more Next month, it will be 50 years since Bob Dylan released this song. Conspiracy theories have it that he died only three years later in a motorcycle accident. The times they are a-changin’ for Acta Physiologica as well. Far from dying, Acta Physiologica enhanced all its performance parameters this year, as for the previous years before (Persson 2012a,b). Submissions surge in parallel to the impact factor. Having an impact factor of 4.4 places Acta ahead of most topnotch journals in the field. Of course, this development only mirrors your publications in Acta. Thank you and congratulations! What makes Acta so special? It is a recipe with several ingredients. Today’s reader often needs a quick scan of a certain research field and wishes original articles to be put into context of state-of-the-art science. Acta takes these needs into account by publishing numerous editorials, which readers download at a remarkable rate (the top two for 2011/2012 (Park et al. 2012, Persson & Persson 2012)). More than 30 editorials appeared in 2013, some highlighting our very best work and others providing a broader picture of a field that has progressed, thanks to deeper understanding provided by the articles in Acta. When was actually the last time you held the printed copy of Acta Physiologica in your hands, physically leafing through it, article by article? Cannot remember? This monthly routine for editors is probably a very unusual event for our readers. In fact, almost all of our subscriptions are online only. The libraries simply do not have space to deposit all the hard copies, and the reader prefers to scan groups of publications and then assess them immediately online. This has led to a situation in which our printed copies are primarily being distributed to our editors and editorial board members, a thank you for their endless work they dedicate to the Journal. However, you may ask, ‘Is the effort of print setting and binding the copies together with the posting really worth the hassle?’ After all, every one of our editors and editorial board members do have free access to the Journal online. Thus, we have decided to go along with modern developments in publishing science (Anon 2007, Perham 2013) and will now make Acta Physiologica a free to publish journal, online only. Saving the printing and postage costs, we can guarantee yet another period of reviewing and publishing your best work without any cost on your side.

Digital Revolution Tamed

This chapter presents the detailed process of innovation involved in the evolution of digital mus... more This chapter presents the detailed process of innovation involved in the evolution of digital music services. It describes the trials and errors that digital music firms experienced in trying to find a commercially viable business model in the digital era. This chapter is composed of four parts: (1) an early history of the digital music service building process after Napster was closed down, (2) iTunes’ achievements and limitations, (3) YouTube and Last.fm’s attempts to valorise digital music and their limitations and (4) the decline of the anticipated P2P technology, and the growth of streaming services has emerged as a new form of digital music consumption platform.

Routledge eBooks, Apr 19, 2018

Information, Communication & Society, Mar 18, 2017

Social Science Research Network, 2021

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2019

Creative Industries Journal, 2019

The rise of P2P technology produced a prediction that ubiquitous access to an unlimited choice of... more The rise of P2P technology produced a prediction that ubiquitous access to an unlimited choice of music, known as the Celestial Jukebox, would loosen the market control and hence bring about cultural diversity in the market. As the streaming music business grows, however, this celebrated musical experience is giving rise to a resurgence of market control. Underlying the difference between the prediction and the reality is the unexpected problem that has arisen in the process of technological development. This article unravels this missing link by demonstrating the underlying dynamics involved in the innovation process through which digital technologies are applied, consumed, and used in the music business.

With the rise of peer-to-peer software like Napster, many predicted that the digitalisation, shar... more With the rise of peer-to-peer software like Napster, many predicted that the digitalisation, sharing and dematerialisation of music would bring a radical transformation within the recording industry. This opened up a period of controversy and uncertainty in which competing visions were articulated of technology-induced change, markedly polarised between utopian and dystopian accounts with no clear view of ways forwards. A series of moves followed as various players sought to valorise that I have friends upon whom to call. The greatest gratitude goes to Jeong-In Park, my daughter, who grew with my thesis, but turned out so much better despite being paid less attention than the thesis. This thesis is dedicated to her. I love you, Jeong-In. I

This chapter sets out the theoretical background to the research. It critically examines the exis... more This chapter sets out the theoretical background to the research. It critically examines the existing approaches in understanding disruptive technologies and their limitations. I then discuss the major theoretical perspectives that guided this research—Social Shaping of Technology (“SST”) (MacKenzie and Wajcman in The Social Shaping of Technology: How the Refrigerator Got Its Hum, Open University Press, Milton Keynes, 1985; Williams and Edge in Research Policy 25:865, 1996) and its extension into Social Learning in Technological Innovation (“SLTI”) (Sorensen in Learning Technology, Constructing Culture: Socio-technical Change as Social Learning, University of Trondheim, Trondheim, 1996; Williams et al. in Social Learning in Technological Innovation: Experimenting with Information and Communication Technologies, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, 2005)—and explain why they serve as valuable frameworks in understanding digital disruption in the recording industry. Drawing upon these theoretica...

This chapter follows on from the previous chapter’s discussion and provides an in-depth analysis ... more This chapter follows on from the previous chapter’s discussion and provides an in-depth analysis of how Spotify found a solution to the digital recording industry’s financial woe persisted since Napster. It examines how this successful legitimate digital music service innovation arose in the least likely place, Sweden, the hotbed of piracy, and addresses major attributes that brought victory to Spotify over the then seemingly unflinching popularity of P2P file-sharing. I continue the discussion on the changing dynamics brought by Spotify and some of the concerns emerging around this new digital music consumption platform.

The purpose of this Working Paper is to pass on our experience of research on song titles and pro... more The purpose of this Working Paper is to pass on our experience of research on song titles and product cycles in UK music publishing which was intended to provide evidence of the impact of copyright in a market. The Working Paper relates to the article ‘Economics of Music Publishing: Copyright and the Market’, published in the Journal of Cultural Economics, 2016. The context of the research was a project on copyright and business models in music publishing that was part of the AHRC funded project: the ‘Economic Survival in a Long Established Creative Industry: Strategies, Business Models and Copyright in Music Publishing’. By collecting data on the product cycles of a sample of long-lasting song titles and trying to establish changes in the product cycle as the copyright regime changed we had hoped to produce empirical evidence on the effect changes in the copyright regime, such as term extension, or to those in copyright management organisations. For a variety of reasons, th...

Digital Revolution Tamed

This chapter analyses the evolution of digital distribution networks since Napster. It first addr... more This chapter analyses the evolution of digital distribution networks since Napster. It first addresses how iTunes laid the foundation of the digital distribution infrastructure and marked the beginning of reintermediation, leading to an emergence of new intermediaries in the market. The chapter then moves on to a discussion on the unprecedented opportunities presented in digital music distribution networks and the unexpected issues bringing challenges for this potential to be fully realised in the market. To recount how both the continuity and discontinuity are converged, I then broaden the perspective and address the changing dynamics unfolding in four major networks—creativity, reproduction, distribution/promotion and consumption.

Digital Revolution Tamed

This final chapter summarises the central theme and arguments of this book. It discusses how this... more This final chapter summarises the central theme and arguments of this book. It discusses how this book is recontextualising the knowledge and understanding of digital disruption in the recording industry and how it overcomes previous linear and simplistic accounts. I look to readdress the complicated process of digital music valorisation where the protracted nature of the digital music business impacting upon innovation and explain the reasons behind why the digital revolution has been tamed. Lastly, the chapter reviews the major points explored throughout the book to explode the myth surrounding digital revolution in the digital recording industry.

Digital Revolution Tamed

This chapter examines the dominant discourses surrounding the digital recording industry. It firs... more This chapter examines the dominant discourses surrounding the digital recording industry. It first demonstrates the evolution of the recording industry in the context of technological advances, intellectual property (IP) and organisational practices. I then extend the view to the perspective of the entire network of the recording industry and discuss a broader range of settings for innovation and a wider array of players involved in the recording industry in pre-digital settings. This chapter finishes by outlining existing views on the digitalisation of music in three dimensions: the techno-centric dichotomy in understanding the digital recording industry, the discourse of P2P technology’s impact on the market and the technological trajectory of P2P technology that has deviated from the prediction.

Digital Revolution Tamed

Following on the previous discussion, this chapter provides an in-depth empirical investigation o... more Following on the previous discussion, this chapter provides an in-depth empirical investigation on INgrooves and addresses the reintermediation process that took place on the digital music distribution networks. It details INgrooves’ innovation process that parallels the process; digital music distribution networks have become reintermediated. Tracing the history from the beginning of the business sparked by iTunes to the partnership with Universal Music Group, this chapter illustrates the process of emergence of new intermediaries and the resurgence of the market control. The detailed process involved in reintermediating distribution infrastructure will reveal the missing link between the prediction and what has happened in the digital music distribution networks.

Acta Physiologica, 2013

Next month, it will be 50 years since Bob Dylan released this song. Conspiracy theories have it t... more Next month, it will be 50 years since Bob Dylan released this song. Conspiracy theories have it that he died only three years later in a motorcycle accident. The times they are a-changin’ for Acta Physiologica as well. Far from dying, Acta Physiologica enhanced all its performance parameters this year, as for the previous years before (Persson 2012a,b). Submissions surge in parallel to the impact factor. Having an impact factor of 4.4 places Acta ahead of most topnotch journals in the field. Of course, this development only mirrors your publications in Acta. Thank you and congratulations! What makes Acta so special? It is a recipe with several ingredients. Today’s reader often needs a quick scan of a certain research field and wishes original articles to be put into context of state-of-the-art science. Acta takes these needs into account by publishing numerous editorials, which readers download at a remarkable rate (the top two for 2011/2012 (Park et al. 2012, Persson & Persson 2012)). More than 30 editorials appeared in 2013, some highlighting our very best work and others providing a broader picture of a field that has progressed, thanks to deeper understanding provided by the articles in Acta. When was actually the last time you held the printed copy of Acta Physiologica in your hands, physically leafing through it, article by article? Cannot remember? This monthly routine for editors is probably a very unusual event for our readers. In fact, almost all of our subscriptions are online only. The libraries simply do not have space to deposit all the hard copies, and the reader prefers to scan groups of publications and then assess them immediately online. This has led to a situation in which our printed copies are primarily being distributed to our editors and editorial board members, a thank you for their endless work they dedicate to the Journal. However, you may ask, ‘Is the effort of print setting and binding the copies together with the posting really worth the hassle?’ After all, every one of our editors and editorial board members do have free access to the Journal online. Thus, we have decided to go along with modern developments in publishing science (Anon 2007, Perham 2013) and will now make Acta Physiologica a free to publish journal, online only. Saving the printing and postage costs, we can guarantee yet another period of reviewing and publishing your best work without any cost on your side.

Digital Revolution Tamed

This chapter presents the detailed process of innovation involved in the evolution of digital mus... more This chapter presents the detailed process of innovation involved in the evolution of digital music services. It describes the trials and errors that digital music firms experienced in trying to find a commercially viable business model in the digital era. This chapter is composed of four parts: (1) an early history of the digital music service building process after Napster was closed down, (2) iTunes’ achievements and limitations, (3) YouTube and Last.fm’s attempts to valorise digital music and their limitations and (4) the decline of the anticipated P2P technology, and the growth of streaming services has emerged as a new form of digital music consumption platform.

This book explores why widespread predictions of the radical transformation in the recording indu... more This book explores why widespread predictions of the radical transformation in the recording industry did not materialise. Although the growing revenue generated from streaming signals the recovery of the digital music business, it is important to ask to what extent is the current development a response to digital innovation. Hyojung Sun finds the answer in the detailed innovation process that has taken place since Napster. She reassesses the way digital music technologies were encultured in complex music valorisation processes and demonstrates how the industry has become reintermediated rather than disintermediated.
This book offers a new understanding of digital disruption in the recording industry. It captures the complexity of the innovation processes that brought about technological development, which arose as a result of interaction across the circuit of the recording business – production, distribution, valorisation, and consumption. By offering a more sophisticated account than the prevailing dichotomy, the book exposes deterministic myths surrounding the radical transformation of the industry.