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Free Ride: How Digital Parasites are Destroying the Culture Business, and How the Culture Business Can Fight Back Audiobook, by Robert Levine Play Audiobook Sample

Free Ride: How Digital Parasites are Destroying the Culture Business, and How the Culture Business Can Fight Back Audiobook

Free Ride: How Digital Parasites are Destroying the Culture Business, and How the Culture Business Can Fight Back Audiobook, by Robert Levine Play Audiobook Sample
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Read By: Byron Wagner Publisher: Random House Audio Listen Time: at 1.0x Speed 6.33 hours at 1.5x Speed 4.75 hours at 2.0x Speed Release Date: October 2011 Format: Unabridged Audiobook ISBN: 9780307879998

Quick Stats About this Audiobook

Total Audiobook Chapters:

78

Longest Chapter Length:

09:49 minutes

Shortest Chapter Length:

15 seconds

Average Chapter Length:

07:23 minutes

Audiobooks by this Author:

2

Other Audiobooks Written by Robert Levine: > View All...

Publisher Description

How did the newspaper, music, and film industries go from raking in big bucks to scooping up digital dimes? Their customers were lured away by the free ride of technology. Now, business journalist Robert Levine shows how they can get back on track. On the Internet, “information wants to be free.” This memorable phrase shaped the online business model, but it is now driving the media companies on whom the digital industry feeds out of business. Today, newspaper stocks have fallen to all-time lows as papers are pressured to give away content, music sales have fallen by more than half since file sharing became common, TV ratings are plum­meting as viewership migrates online, and publishers face off against Amazon over the price of digital books. In Free Ride, Robert Levine narrates an epic tale of value destruction that moves from the corridors of Congress, where the law was passed that legalized YouTube, to the dorm room of Shawn Fanning, the founder of Napster; from the bargain-pricing dramas involving iTunes and Kindle to Google’s fateful decision to digitize first and ask questions later. Levine charts how the media industry lost control of its destiny and suggests innovative ways it can resist the pull of zero. Fearless in its reporting and analysis, Free Ride is the busi­ness history of the decade and a much-needed call to action.

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"Very thought-provoking. Everyone trying to make a living in the arts these days should read this. So should all the people who think that those trying to make a living from the arts are supposed to work for free for their entertainment. (And that includes librarians and teachers, yes.)"

— K.V. (5 out of 5 stars)

Free Ride Listener Reviews

Overall Performance: 2.8 out of 52.8 out of 52.8 out of 52.8 out of 52.8 out of 5 (2.80)
5 Stars: 1
4 Stars: 0
3 Stars: 2
2 Stars: 1
1 Stars: 1
Narration: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
5 Stars: 0
4 Stars: 0
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1 Stars: 0
Story: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
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  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " Ok read, but I couldn't finish it - more of a reflection on me than the author, but I can't quite stop thinking that these ideas are expressed in a better way in other books. "

    — Vaughan, 11/29/2012
  • Overall Performance: 1 out of 51 out of 51 out of 51 out of 51 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " Terrible writing and a spurious argument. What more do I need for permission to move on to the next book on my long list? "

    — Lynn, 10/6/2012
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " It was okay. The author made some good points. "

    — gargravarr, 9/18/2012
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " The author makes his point clear in the first 3 chapters or so. The rest is mostly a drag. "

    — Vikram, 4/28/2012
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " Clear and concise. A great read! "

    — Steven, 1/11/2012

About Byron Wagner

Byron Wagner is an audiobook narrator and voiceover artist based in Los Angeles. He began his career in entertainment at age eight, performing as a magician and ventriloquist for children’s parties, then graduated to theater, radio, TV, and film. After living in the UK for several years, his continuing love of acting and reading have happily led him back to the other side of the studio glass, doing voice acting and narrating, directing, and producing audiobooks.