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This is a very interesting post from Greg Sandoval over at Cnet News.

The Internet is a killer of art–at least that’s how a couple of former rock ‘n’ roll gods see it.

John Mellencamp, known for such ’80s hits as “Jack and Diane” and “Hurts So Good,” last week said the Web is the most dangerous creation since the atomic bomb. Stevie Nicks, the Fleetwood Mac songstress, concluded in an interview this week that the “Internet has destroyed rock.”

We have to be free enough with our music to permit people to adapt it for their own purposes. - Jack Holzman (Credit: Warner Music Group)

Jac Holzman, the man who discovered The Doors, founded Elektra Records, and nudged the big recording companies into adopting the compact disc, considers the Web and says: “I think the music industry has a bright future.”

Wow, that’s quite a contrast in views. The difference is Holzman has witnessed most of the industry-shaking technologies during his six decades in the music business–and he’s not panicking.

This year, the 79-year-old celebrates Elektra’s 60th anniversary, and at a life stage when Holzman’s biggest trouble might be choosing the right 9-iron, he’s helping to search for answers to the music industry’s burning digital questions. He has said in the past that there were those in the record business who didn’t think he was relevant any longer, but Holzman is back in the thick of it. Warner Music Group CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. sought him out, hired him as a senior adviser, and sees value in the context Holzman can provide.

“I love the way Jac approaches the intersection of music and technology–through the lens of opportunity,” Bronfman said.

At spotting opportunities, Holzman has a notable record. As a 19-year-old, Holzman started Elektra with $300 he received at his bar mitzvah. The label would later go to sign such acts as Queen, Judy Collins, The Stooges, and Jim Morrison. After Holzman sold Electra to Warner Communication (a forerunner of Warner Music Group and Warner Bros. Pictures), he became WCI’s chief technology officer. In that role, he helped oversee some of the company’s film and TV ventures.

When Jack Valenti, the chief of the Motion Picture Association of America, was trying to kill video recorders and comparing them to the Boston Strangler, Holzman was pushing WCI leaders to embrace the home-video market. With cable TV he recognized its potential early and contributed to the development of pay-per-view programming.

In music, Holzman saw the rise of the LP, 8-track tape, DAT, compact disc, MP3, and BitTorrent. After all that, new technologies don’t spook him. On the contrary, he says many of these technologies helped make a lot of artists and industry people rich. When it comes to the Internet and digital distribution, Holzman is confident music labels can capitalize on them too. He says they really don’t have a choice.

Read the rest of the article here…

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