An Experimental and Analytical Study of On-Line Digital Music Sampling Strategies
Yanbin Tu and Min Lu
International Journal of Electronic Commerce,
Volume 10, Number 3, Spring 2006, pp. 39.
Abstract: Product sampling is an important marketing strategy for experience goods like music, but on-line digital music sampling has not been explored in the literature. Based on an experimental study, this paper investigates some regularities of digital music sampling and identifies the factors that govern its effectiveness. Four digital music sampling strategies are modeled: segment sampling, low-quality sampling, stingy sampling, and double-sampling. Stingy sampling, now widely used in the music industry, is the least effective of the four. Segment sampling or low-quality sampling would be the best choice for music vendors under certain conditions. Double-sampling, proposed for the first time in this study, holds a great deal of promise as search costs get lower. The analysis confirms the importance of an effective digital music sampling strategy and sheds light on digital rights management (DRM) in the music industry.
Key Words and Phrases: Digital music sampling strategy, digital rights management (DRM), on-line digital music, product sampling.