MediaNet Digital President/CEO Alan McGlade has penned an open commentary on the state of the digital music business. After recapping the history of DRM, McGlade says that social networking and the open availability of content for all devices will further put the consumer in the driver's seat.

McGlade writes that the end of DRM is "all good news for the end user who is King in Digital Media 2.0. Users will now be connected to a virtually unlimited combination of services, offers, devices and content. The services will spread the gamut; a feature of media players, social networks, recommendation engines, online affinity groups, retailers or brand marketers. Media can be consumed in download purchases, conditional downloads (rentals), on demand or linear streaming (online radio and TV). Devices will include portable media players, mobile handsets, automobile consoles, streaming servers or PCs. And content will be premium music and video from labels and studios, proprietary content, or user generated content."

He continues, "In this world, centralization gives way to unprecedented decentralization. Consider how the music industry has operated for decades. The record label was the significant tastemaker. While there are thousands of talented musicians only a handful ever received a recording contract. A signed act went through a formal recording process and released product in 10 song albums. The albums with the most commercial potential were heavily marketed with radio airtime, television play and powerful retail positioning in stores. This further reduced exposure to the lucky few at a time when most consumers had one basic path to discover and acquire music."

McGlade concludes, that "Digital Media 2.0 is ushering in an era of unprecedented choice for the consumer and the savvy content producer. In this world premium content and user content has increasingly merged, and is tailored to the consumer’s preference in service, offer and device. Now, where you are, the device you have, or the site you’re on, slowly but surely cease to matter. We’re left with a consumer that can listen to what they want, where they want, no longer hindered by choices about formats and rules. Instead they are fueled by friends' influence, recommendation engines, editorial, radio, etc… that will alter use radically. Finally the user and the entertainment industry end up aligned on the only thing that matters: the music, shows, and films."