Title: Lend Me Your Ears

Introduction

         Since the very first digital music player in 1979, these devices have taken an increasingly huge amount of time from those who use them. We all appreciate music and its many forms, but in the past few decades it has become a whole new market to get people to listen to a device where previously that need was fulfilled by the radio. Now days we can see that peoples need to listen the music they want to listen to is becoming increasingly unique to the individual. As new devices are released it has become a battle to ensure that the one you sell most comfortably contours to the consumer’s lifestyle. Taking a survey approach, I decided to learn what it is about digital music players (DMP) that entice their users to use them as opposed to other suitable alternatives.

Literature Review

            People get music players for different reasons and a few studies that relate to the changing times. Albarran (2007) notes that listening to the terrestrial radio is a dying tradition and that the perfferred listening format is the MP3. And according to the study by Levey (2011) it is suggested that extensive use of DMP could lead to addicting behavior. Which, when coupled with the idea that these devices can actually inhibit a person’s interaction with others it is fairly clear that the devices can present a risk to consumer interpersonal relations due to self isolation. On that same note however in recent years the market is slowy moving toward “super devices” in the sense that there soon wont be just DMP that exist just to play music. Wifi wireless internet connectivity is a growing market and incorperating it into all devices will eventually become a reality. The majority of the studies I used were unable to relate directly to this because music devices only began utilizing this feature in 2007.

Method

         Along with detailed analysis of 6 peer reviewed scholarly journal articles, I conducted a series of 5 interviews of varying age and socioeconomic statuses to determine what devices they used regularly to play their music and their reasons for doing so. My interviewees included a 52 year old Sikh Indian male, 32 year old Caucasian male, 41 German female, 24 year old Chinese male, and a 20 year old Vietnemese male. The interviews allowed me to incorperate different cultures as they relate to DMP use. They were chosen according to the devices they used and their willingness to participate.

Findings and Discussion

            My interview results reflect more or less what I believed would be the case. People are attracted to products that countour to their lifestyle while mathcing a given price range. DMP’s serve many purposes to individuals and as noted by Atkinson and Rubin (1965) loneliness does play a significant factor as well. It has become a norm for people to utilize their devices as a means of passing time quickly. Very few if any people use their DMP to listen to music as and nothing else. What I did note however is that people with more active social lives tend to use their devices as a means to fufill their interpersonal needs more than one who does not. When possible people wanted to use only a single device for all their communication needs, but of course not all devices are capable of this. Still, it is as Emanual (2008) notes, that the internet capabilities of any device “adds another means of communication to the telephone and face-to-face contact…one that is often convenient and affordable.” Ultimately it seems as though that people will use the device that gives the most amount of utility that suits their lifestyle.

Limitations and Future Research

This study was limitted in a number of ways. First off the data was collected from individuals in a single city. Similar results may not be seen in other demographics. Still the study offers a glimpse into the way new technology is chaginging the way people spend their free time listening to music and the role of gratifications in this process. Future research topics could include whether or not peer influence is a contributing factor to the advancement of such usage. Exactly how does word of mouth affect the adoption of new listening devices? Also one could look at how various marketing strategies between competing company campaigns such as Microsoft and Apple and analyze respondant satisfaction as a result. Another idea would deal with how these devices are so quickly becoming a part of people’s lives that they may become dependant on the use of them. Responses I received had much to do with boredom and how the use of their devices helped pass the time or make other activities pass quicker.