MP3 Technology Issues - Essay Example

MP3 files are useful because they reduce the amount of space required on the hard disk without a great loss in audio quality. Of course, the true audiophile may consider MP3 to be an inferior technology as compared to audio coming from a compact disc but for the vast majority of listeners, the audio quality remains largely indistinguishable. For a generic comparison, it can be said that converting an audio CD to MP3 at a midrange compression setting would reduce the size of the data to ten percent of the original (Wikipedia, 2008).

The reason why the format exists and the reason why it has become so popular is that computers themselves and digitized content have become a consumer necessity (Wikipedia, 2008). In a world where individuals consume information from sources other than television and print media, the consumption of music and even fashion goods may be transferred to computers. That is perhaps the reason why we see designer computers with professional artwork on their cases and bodies. Since consumers want to get music on their computers, the MP3 file standard becomes important to both consumers and producers.

In essence, the compression takes place by reducing the accuracy of certain parts of the data stream while retaining the basics. The same methodology of compression is also used in other media over the Internet and through the process of digitizing media for consumption and applies to videos and pictures over the Internet as well (Wikipedia, 2008). For instance, MPEG movies and JPEG images also use the same idea to compress large amounts of data to manageable sizes (MPEG, 2008).

The MP3 standard finds its roots in the research conducted in 1894 when it was discovered that human hearing is limited since a tone could be made inaudible if another tone of lower frequency masked it. Later developments of fast computers allowed audio data to be compressed and decompressed for playback on the fly. In the mid-nineties, internet speeds had improved considerably for a large number of people and the penetration of broadband allowed the easy transfer of MP3 files from one point to another (MPEG). 2008.

By the first years of the present decade, the ease of creating MP3 files through the compression of digital audio contained in compact discs and the ability to transfer a large number of MP3 files using file-sharing networks created many copyright issues which led some individuals to question the format itself. Record companies and music sellers contested that file-sharing networks on the internet were nothing more than tools for creating international music piracy networks. Companies and organizations such as Napster, Kazaa, and others were shut down by law enforcement agencies as lawsuits against them were won by the music industry (Wikipedia, 2008).

At present, even though MP3 is the most popular file format for portable and downloaded audio playback, many online music retailers are hesitant about using the MP3 format. Some may also modify and change the otherwise open format to encrypt the data contained in the MP3 file. Such modifications may make it impossible to use the file in ways that the seller had not intended (Wikipedia, 2008). For example, a seller may put a limitation on the number of times the file can be played or the number of computers that can use a copy of the same file.

Such MP3 files are known as protected files while the files which do not have any protection attached to them are known as unprotected MP3s. Protected files have allied some of the fears of the recording industry and with the coming of the music environment created by Apple Inc. digital music, MP3 players and MP3 files have become as commonplace as cassette players were in the 80s and CD players in the 90s. In the future, it can be expected that MP3 files will become more prevalent as devices such as mobile phones and portable media players continue to permeate the consumer market and make MP3 a more recognizable and accepted format than it already is.