Your research should be based on how your selected record label relates to the 3 key areas: 1) Production: The recording of the music, where and how? 2) Distribution: How the music is promoted? How does it get it in to the shops, played on the radio and made available for payable downloads? 3) Consumption: How do people consume the music made available? Buying CDs, downloading music, buying tickets for gigs, buying merchandise? How the music industry has changed in the shift from analogue, to digital? Use record labels to illustrate that. Where to start? 'The Big 4' though it is now 'The Big 3'. EMI - were bought out by Universal. Warner Brothers. Universal. SONY. 21.5% Sony/BMG - A global record group founded on March 3rd 2004. - Sony BMG was a joint 50/50 company between Sony Music Entertainment and Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) - It owned and distributed record labels such as: Epic Records, Columbia Records and RCA. - On 5th August 2008, Sony Corp agreed to buy Bertelsmanns 50 percent stake for $1.2 billion to get full control. The music company was renamed Sony Music Entertainment inc. Sony's Labels & Artists. Sony's labels include; - RCA label group. - SONY CGM. - Columbia. - Syco. Some current artists include; - Justin Timberlake. - Foo Fighters. - Kings of Leon. - Bruce Spring. Warner Brothers; - WMG is a global leader in national and international reportoire and home to some of the best known labels in the recorded music industry including: Asylum, Atlantic , Cordless, Rhino, Roadrunner, Sire, Warner Bros, Warner Music Nashville and Word. - In addition to it's the US labels, WMG operates through numerous affiliates and licensees in more than 50 countries. - Their recorded music buisness includes growing artist service business, which offers artist management.