A Report on Disruptive Technologies and Industry Disruption

This report explores the concept of disruptive technologies, which displace established technologies, shake up industries, and create new markets. It examines the impact of these technologies on the music and telecommunications industries. In the music industry, the report discusses how technologies like autotune, MP3s, and digital music platforms have transformed music production, distribution, and consumption, leading to shifts from record companies to streaming sites. The report also touches on the impact of VR/AR technologies and blockchain. In the telecommunications industry, the report analyzes how mobile technologies (2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G) and internet innovations have revolutionized communication and content creation, impacting traditional telephone services and the dominance of companies like Nokia and Motorola. The report concludes by emphasizing the disruptive nature of technology advancement, which leads to the transformation of various industries, either positively or negatively.

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Disruptive Technologies
By
Name of Author
Institution of Affiliation

DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES 2
Disruptive Technologies
Introduction
Technology advancement helps improve the lives of many people. The industrial
revolution saw the mechanization of industries and recently information and technologies
revolution such as computing, mobile, information and internet technology is transforming the
way business operate in the industry. Disruptive technology refers to technology that displaces
an already established technology. Consequently, by doing so it shakes up the industry and
creates another product that establishes a new industry. The development in technologies in
industries has led to the large as well as older companies fighting for their existence. Some of the
industries that have been affected by disruptive technologies include; the music industry and the
communications industry.
The Music Industry
Today there are an array of ways that enables an individual to not only record but also produce
music. However, although there has been tremendous progress in the music industry has not
always been like this as initially the people lacked a means to record music. Nevertheless, the
invention of electricity lead to the invention of the auto tune, MP3s, tape players as well as
MIDI. These technologies contributed to making records obsolete.
The 21st century saw the availing of several options that have completely transformed the
industry. Technology progression saw the Digitalisation of music which is currently influencing
the music industry significantly. According to statistics, the total global revenues for the music
industry in 2016 increased by three percent. The digital revenues on the other hand have
increased by nearly ten percent. The reason is because of changes in customer experience due to

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the movement of music online. The movement has changed the distribution of music thus
changing the industry players from record companies to streaming sites such as Spotify.
The new technology transformed recording as well as music production. Additionally, it
also changed the channels of distribution of the product. Initially, the musicians were required to
be under a music label company so as to be able to exercise their talent. Moreover, music stores
were used to control the distribution of the music which meant that the music record labels had
the upper hand in the distribution of the music in the market (Wikström, & DeFillippi, 2016).
Additionally, technology has also enabled music to become more accessible to those that
can’t afford to go and watch their favorite musicians perform. This is due to the introduction of
VR and AR technologies which have made music less exclusive. Consequently, these
technologies are also positively disruptive as they provide musicians with the exposure they
require to become successful (Wikström, & DeFillippi, 2016).
Lastly, technology has led to the adoption of blockchain traceability which will not only
open sales but also make it honest. Technology has made it possible for musicians to receive
their appropriate amount for records and events. The adoption of blockchains led to the death of
physical sales (Crosby, Pattanayak, Verma, & Kalyanaraman, 2016).
Telecommunications Industry
The telecommunications industry encompasses the telephone as well as internet service
providers. The industry has played an important role in the mobile communications and
information society evolution. Traditionally, people have always made telephone calls so as to
communicate with one another. Although this is today still being practiced as it is the industry’s
largest revenue generator, network technology is transforming it to be more about text as well as
videos and not the voice. Technology progression has led to the development of a social

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revolution. The revolution has changed the way businesses and people interact, engage as well
as collaborate.
The utilization of mobile as well as smart devices has increased the avenues through
which consumers can develop content as well as consume content. Initially, mobile technology
involved the utilization of 2G, 3G and 4G technologies. As the technologies advanced they
made the previous technologies obsolete and the with the recent roll out of 5G technology, it is
threatening the 4G technology (Amin, 2015). The technologies have enhanced communication
through various mobile applications, it has provided avenues such as Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram which are today being utilized to spread various content. Facebook introduction of a
messaging platform in its application made SMS (Short Message Services) redundant or
obsolete.
Furthermore, the content is being produced as well as consumed at a faster rate in
comparison to earlier decades. The invention of the internet in the 1990s completely changed the
accessibility of information. Google and Microsoft, for example, has replaced Nokia and
Motorola dominance in the market as they are more popular today (Ghezzi, Cortimiglia, &
Frank, 2015).
In conclusion, technology advancement leads to the disruption of various industries either
in a positive or negative way. The reason is because the development in technologies in
industries has led to the large as well as older companies fighting for their existence However,
positive disruption leads to the development of new industries.

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References
Amin, M. 2015. Smart Grid. PUBLIC UTILITIES FORTNIGHTLY.
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Crosby, M., Pattanayak, P., Verma, S., & Kalyanaraman, V. 2016. Blockchain technology:
Beyond bitcoin. Applied Innovation, 2, 6-10.
Fan, L., & Suh, Y. H. 2014. Why do users switch to a disruptive technology? An empirical study
based on expectation-disconfirmation theory. Information & Management, 51(2), 240-
248.
Ghezzi, A., Cortimiglia, M. N., & Frank, A. G. 2015. Strategy and business model design in
dynamic telecommunications industries: A study on Italian mobile network operators.
Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 90, 346-354.
Wikström, P., & DeFillippi, R. (Eds.). 2016. Business Innovation and Disruption in the Music
Industry. Edward Elgar Publishing.