MB-­‐695	
  Culminating	
  Experience	
  

	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  
Jennifer	
  Buglione	
  
	
  
Reflective	
  Paper	
  

	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  
	
  

Summary	
  	
  
	
  

My	
   culminating	
   experience,	
   also	
   known	
   as	
   my	
   thesis,	
   is	
   a	
  Research	
  Paper	
   that	
   asks	
  

the	
  question:	
  How	
  to	
  Use	
  Digital	
  Currency	
  as	
  a	
  Music	
  Industry	
  Standard.	
  The	
  paper	
  will	
  
be	
   broken	
   up	
   into	
   four	
   parts:	
   Literature	
  Review,	
  Methodology,	
  Results/Discussion	
  and	
  
Additional	
   Stories.	
   I	
  will	
  analyze	
  the	
  history	
  and	
  use	
  of	
  digital	
  currency/crypto	
  currency	
  
and	
   digital	
   payments.	
   I	
   will	
   investigate	
   which	
   companies	
   within	
   the	
   music	
   industry	
   show	
  
innovation	
  in	
  this	
  field.	
  	
  At	
  the	
  end	
  of	
  the	
  paper	
  and	
  my	
  research	
  I	
  will	
  formulate	
  my	
  own	
  
hypothesis	
  and	
  conclusion	
  about	
  how	
  and	
  if	
  we	
  can	
  use	
  digital	
  currency.	
  	
  
	
  
Process	
  
When	
   I	
   came	
   to	
   Berklee	
   I	
   had	
   the	
   grand	
   idea	
   to	
   bring	
   a	
   streaming	
   arm	
   into	
   the	
  
traditional	
   record	
   label.	
   Apparently	
   this	
   type	
   of	
   situation	
   had	
   been	
   done	
   already,	
   at	
   least	
  
somewhat	
  done	
  by	
  Universal	
  and	
  after	
  being	
  in	
  Entrepreneurship	
  &	
  Innovation,	
  I	
  realized	
  
the	
  value	
  proposition	
  was	
  weak.	
  As	
  I	
  began	
  to	
  let	
  go	
  of	
  that	
  idea,	
  I	
  knew	
  that	
  I	
  wanted	
  to	
  
work	
  for	
  myself.	
  I	
  wanted	
  to	
  create	
  a	
  company	
  that	
  would	
  bring	
  about	
  a	
  new	
  culture	
  and	
  
new	
  way	
  of	
  thinking.	
  I	
  wanted	
  to	
  be	
  a	
  disruptor	
  but	
  most	
  importantly	
  I	
  wanted	
  to	
  be	
  my	
  
own	
  boss.	
  Since	
  the	
  program	
  is	
  divided	
  by	
  different	
  sectors	
  I	
  felt	
  I	
  was	
  most	
  interested	
  in	
  
taking	
   the	
   Emerging	
   Business	
   Models	
   practicum.	
   It	
   seemed	
   like	
   the	
   best	
   choice	
   for	
   me	
  
seeing	
  as	
  how	
  I	
  wanted	
  to	
  reinvent	
  the	
  wheel	
  of	
  the	
  industry.	
  Before	
  the	
  practicum	
  would	
  
take	
   place,	
   I	
   needed	
   a	
   larger	
   and	
   more	
   global	
   perspective	
   of	
   the	
   entertainment	
   industry	
  
from	
   the	
   business	
   side	
   of	
   things.	
   As	
   Perrin’s	
   Economics	
   of	
   Global	
   Entertainment	
   class	
  
began,	
   I	
   read	
   more	
   of	
   The	
   Economist	
   and	
   stumbled	
   upon	
   Bitcoin.	
   Eventually	
   we	
   were	
  
presented	
  with	
  a	
  Harvard	
  Business	
  case	
  that	
  focused	
  on	
  digital	
  payment	
  systems	
  where	
  the	
  

future	
   lies	
   within	
   the	
   system.	
   The	
   case	
   broke	
   down	
   how	
   we’ve	
   become	
   a	
   more	
   digital	
  
society	
  from	
  using	
  cash	
  to	
  now,	
  cards	
  and	
  even	
  the	
  potential	
  that	
  Bitcoin	
  presents.	
  I	
  began	
  
to	
   develop	
   an	
   obsession	
   with	
   Bitcoin.	
   The	
   obsession	
   with	
   Bitcoin	
   would	
   eventually	
   turn	
  
into	
  my	
  thesis.	
  Bitcoin	
  is	
  a	
  digital	
  currency	
  that	
  made	
  a	
  big	
  splash	
  in	
  2009	
  by	
  an	
  anonymous	
  
group	
   or	
   person	
   that	
   went	
   by	
   the	
   name	
   of	
   Satoshi	
   Nakamoto.	
   It	
   peaked	
   in	
   worth	
   during	
  
2011	
  where	
  1	
  BTC	
  (Bitcoin)	
  was	
  worth	
  $1,100.	
  As	
  the	
  years	
  went	
  by	
  more	
  and	
  more	
  people	
  
used	
  Bitcoin	
  and	
  started	
  to	
  see	
  its	
  true	
  potential,	
  as	
  I	
  did.	
  Bitcoin	
  dropped	
  more	
  than	
  half	
  
and	
   was	
   involved	
   in	
   serious	
   legal	
   issues.	
   I	
   began	
   to	
   scour	
   the	
   Internet	
   trying	
   to	
   understand	
  
the	
  hype	
  and	
  why	
  the	
  tech	
  community	
  used	
  the	
  currency.	
  	
  It	
  was	
  simple,	
  Bitcoin	
  not	
  only	
  
provided	
   a	
   simple,	
   transparent	
   way	
   to	
   pay	
   for	
   items	
   but	
   it	
   was	
   global.	
   Bitcoin	
   research	
  
brought	
   me	
   to	
   the	
   blockchain,	
   the	
   engine	
   behind	
   Bitcoin,	
   and	
   a	
   key	
   feature	
   that	
   makes	
  
Bitcoin	
   unique.	
   My	
   mind	
   buzzed	
   with	
   so	
   many	
   ideas	
   as	
   I	
   tried	
   to	
   think	
   of	
   ways	
   to	
   use	
  
Bitcoin	
   and	
   the	
   blockchain.	
   As	
   I	
   made	
   my	
   way	
   to	
   school	
   one	
   day	
   I	
   had	
   an	
   epiphany.	
   What	
   if	
  
we	
   could	
   use	
   the	
   protocol	
   that	
   powers	
   Bitcoin	
   and	
   automatically	
   embed	
   it	
   into	
   music	
   or	
  
any	
  form	
  of	
  entertainment	
  therefore	
  quantifying	
  or	
  putting	
  a	
  proper	
  value	
  to	
  the	
  time	
  spent	
  
when	
  consuming	
  and	
  engaging	
  media,	
  all	
  media.	
  	
  
Enter,	
  the	
  Emerging	
  Business	
  Practicum	
  where	
  we	
  developed	
  a	
  business	
  plan	
  for	
  a	
  
business	
  you	
  were	
  interested	
  in	
  creating.	
  I	
  came	
  up	
  with	
  Coinvergence	
  a	
  software	
  company	
  
that	
   allows	
   the	
   blockchain	
   to	
   be	
   embedded.	
   I	
   figured	
   since	
   I	
   was	
   going	
   to	
   develop	
   a	
  
business	
   plan	
   I	
   should	
   do	
   a	
   business	
   plan	
   for	
   a	
   culminating	
   experience.	
   Instead,	
   I	
   thought	
   I	
  
could	
   define	
   a	
   more	
   strategic	
   approach	
   by	
   participating	
   in	
   research.	
   Academic	
   research	
  
presented	
  in	
  the	
  proper	
  way	
  can	
  be	
  extremely	
  valuable	
  especially	
  as	
  it	
  relates	
  to	
  a	
  subject	
  
that	
   is	
   still	
   quite	
   emerging.	
   If	
   I	
   packaged	
   it	
   in	
   a	
   digestible	
   format,	
   I	
   might	
   be	
   able	
   to	
   revamp	
  

the	
   buzz.	
   I	
   also	
   felt	
   that	
   I	
   could	
   use	
   the	
   research	
   to	
   prove	
   or	
   disprove	
   the	
   need	
   and	
  
existence	
  of	
  Coinvergence.	
  Though	
  the	
  business	
  plan	
  of	
  Coinvergence	
  needs	
  to	
  be	
  fleshed	
  
out	
  more,	
  the	
  biggest	
  weakness	
  of	
  the	
  plan	
  is	
  the	
  lack	
  of	
  technological	
  skill	
  and	
  expertise,	
  
aka	
  it	
  can	
  be	
  done	
  in	
  theory	
  but	
  I	
  can’t	
  physically	
  make	
  the	
  software.	
  I	
  needed	
  a	
  Software	
  
Developer	
  or	
  some	
  kind	
  of	
  coder	
  to	
  help	
  create	
  the	
  vision	
  for	
  Coinvergence.	
  This	
  also	
  gave	
  
me	
  yet	
  another	
  reason	
  why	
  I	
  decided	
  to	
  work	
  on	
  a	
  research	
  paper.	
  	
  I	
  could	
  expose	
  myself	
  to	
  
some	
  of	
  the	
  smartest	
  developers	
  informally	
  and	
  academically.	
  	
  
Once	
   I	
   committed	
   to	
   the	
   research	
   paper	
   the	
   next	
   step	
   was	
   to	
   figure	
   out	
   my	
   research	
  
question.	
   I	
   learned	
   that	
   depending	
   on	
   the	
   type	
   of	
   research	
   question	
   could	
   determine	
   the	
  
type	
   of	
   methodology	
   I	
   would	
   use	
   to	
   answer	
   the	
   question.	
   	
   After	
   partaking	
   in	
   some	
   heavy	
  
research	
  and	
  really	
  exploring	
  the	
  entire	
  crypto	
  currency	
  landscape	
  with	
  a	
  granular	
  lens,	
  I	
  
can	
  now	
  say	
  that	
  I’m	
  well	
  versed	
  in	
  the	
  language	
  and	
  ecosystem.	
  	
  I	
  can	
  also	
  explain	
  some	
  of	
  
the	
  technological	
  complexities	
  in	
  the	
  crypto	
  world	
  that	
  most	
  may	
  not	
  understand.	
  My	
  initial	
  
research	
  led	
  me	
  to	
  use	
  ‘HOW.‘	
  How	
  can	
  we	
  use	
  digital	
  currency?	
  How	
  can	
  we	
  make	
  digital	
  
currency	
   a	
   standard?	
   How	
   can	
   we	
   use	
   the	
   technology	
   that	
   powers	
   digital	
   currency	
   in	
  
disruptive	
   ways?	
   These	
   were	
   the	
   types	
   of	
   questions	
   I	
   began	
   to	
   ask	
   myself	
   during	
   the	
  
Literature	
   Review	
   of	
   my	
   research	
   paper.	
   As	
   I	
   wrote	
   the	
   questions,	
   I	
   began	
   to	
   formulate	
  
some	
   early	
   conclusions	
   about	
   where	
   the	
   research	
   could	
   take	
   me.	
   	
   The	
   question	
   of	
   HOW	
  
brought	
  me	
  to	
  the	
  fact	
  that	
  I	
  would	
  conduct	
  qualitative	
  research	
  instead	
  of	
  quantitative.	
  It’s	
  
important	
  to	
  hear	
  opinions	
  of	
  the	
  few	
  renowned	
  experts	
  versus	
  the	
  masses	
  because	
  of	
  the	
  
subject	
  matter.	
  Digital	
  and	
  crypto	
  currency	
  enthusiasts	
  are	
  a	
  growing	
  niche	
  that	
  I	
  want	
  to	
  
be	
  part	
  of	
  so	
  I	
  started	
  to	
  follow	
  those	
  kinds	
  of	
  executives	
  on	
  Twitter	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  troll	
  posts	
  on	
  
Reddit	
  to	
  insure	
  I	
  was	
  part	
  of	
  the	
  conversation.	
  	
  

After	
   a	
   bulk	
   of	
   the	
   Literature	
   Review	
   had	
   been	
   done,	
   I	
   flagged	
   some	
   of	
   the	
   key	
  
players	
   and	
   companies	
   in	
   what	
   I	
   identified	
   as	
   three	
   important	
   industries	
   that	
   needed	
   to	
  
connect	
  in	
  my	
  paper:	
  Finance,	
  Technology	
  and	
  Music.	
  	
  Doing	
  this	
  allowed	
  me	
  to	
  choose	
  two	
  
different	
  companies	
  (PeerTracks	
   &	
   SongCoin)	
  to	
  profile	
  and	
  write	
  an	
  academic	
  case	
  study	
  
as	
  part	
  of	
  my	
  culminating	
  experience.	
  I	
  chose	
  PeerTracks	
  and	
  SongCoin	
  because	
  they	
  had	
  
unique	
   business	
   models	
   and	
   used	
   Bitcoin	
   in	
   more	
   than	
   one	
   way.	
   I	
   searched	
   everything	
   I	
  
could,	
  to	
  possibly	
  uncover	
  the	
  most	
  important	
  facts	
  about	
  these	
  two	
  companies.	
  Through	
  
my	
   searching	
   I	
   discovered	
   that	
   PeerTracks	
   was	
   set	
   to	
   be	
   at	
   Midem,	
   which	
   gave	
   me	
   the	
  
opportunity	
  to	
  take	
  my	
  research	
  further.	
  Not	
  only	
  was	
  the	
  President	
  of	
  PeerTracks	
  talking	
  
about	
  the	
  blockchain	
  technology	
  at	
   Midem	
  but	
  also	
  there	
  were	
  a	
  couple	
  panels	
  that	
  were	
  
dedicated	
   to	
   everything	
   I	
   intended	
   to	
   speak	
   about	
   in	
   my	
   research.	
   I	
   sought	
   to	
   interview	
  
PeerTracks	
  President,	
  Cedric	
  Cobban	
  along	
  with	
  the	
  creation	
  of	
  a	
  case	
  study	
  because	
  I	
  felt	
  it	
  
could	
   make	
   the	
   research	
   stronger	
   overall.	
   As	
   Midem	
   approached	
   in	
   the	
   beautiful	
   French	
  
Riviera,	
   I	
   had	
   to	
   connect	
   with	
   each	
   of	
   the	
   speakers	
   that	
   were	
   talking	
   about	
   Bitcoin,	
  
cryptocurrency	
  and	
  blockchain	
  technology,	
  which	
  I	
  did.	
  	
  	
  
Returning	
  from	
  Midem,	
  on	
  a	
  career	
  inspiration,	
  I	
  realized	
  I	
  had	
  a	
  lot	
  to	
  do.	
  The	
  next	
  
step	
   in	
   the	
   research	
   was	
   to	
   summarize	
   the	
   literature	
   review	
   followed	
   by	
   create	
   a	
   list	
   of	
  
questions	
  needed	
  to	
  conduct	
  qualitative	
  interviews	
  with	
  my	
  team	
  of	
  experts.	
  	
  My	
  team	
  of	
  
experts	
   consists	
   of	
   a	
   range	
   of	
   people	
   across	
   the	
   three	
   industries	
   identified	
   earlier.	
   The	
  
preliminary	
  steps	
  had	
  been	
  taken	
  and	
  now	
  it’s	
  about	
  the	
  final	
  portion,	
  which	
  is	
  to	
  write	
  and	
  
conclude	
  everything	
  that	
  I’ve	
  learned	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  giving	
  my	
  opinions.	
  	
  
	
  
	
  

Results	
  –	
  Align	
  with	
  expectations	
  
As	
  I	
  engulfed	
  myself	
  in	
  research	
  I	
  became	
  more	
  biased	
  and	
  more	
  apt	
  to	
  argue	
  on	
  the	
  
side	
   of	
   decentralization	
   of	
   our	
   banking	
   systems.	
   In	
   terms	
   of	
   how	
   my	
   expectations	
   were	
  
managed,	
   I’d	
   say	
   I	
   expected	
   this	
   amount	
   of	
   work	
   for	
   a	
   research	
   paper.	
   I	
   definitely	
   expected	
  
to	
   become	
   deflated	
   during	
   the	
   process	
   because	
   the	
   subject	
   involves	
   Economics	
   (not	
   my	
  
strongest	
   subject)	
   and	
   tons	
   of	
   technical	
   jargon	
   I	
   wasn’t	
   prepared	
   for.	
   	
   I	
   needed	
   to	
   have	
   a	
  
simple	
  understanding	
  on	
  how	
  one	
  can	
  create	
  currency	
  out	
  of	
  thin	
  air	
  and	
  that	
  threw	
  me	
  for	
  
a	
  loop.	
  	
  In	
  the	
  beginning	
  of	
  the	
  paper,	
  I	
  stated	
  that	
  I	
  wanted	
  to	
  create	
  a	
  business	
  plan	
  for	
  my	
  
CE.	
  What	
  put	
  the	
  nail	
  in	
  the	
  coffin	
  for	
  me	
  on	
  not	
  creating	
  a	
  business	
  plan	
  as	
  my	
  CE	
  is	
  the	
  
fact	
   that	
   an	
   expert	
   developer	
   told	
   me	
   Coinvergence	
   simply	
   couldn’t	
   be	
   done.	
   That	
   really	
  
deterred	
  me.	
  I	
  heard	
  different	
  opinions	
  on	
  how	
  to	
  create	
  something	
  like	
  Coinvergence.	
  	
  
	
  
Next	
  Steps	
  
The	
   next	
   and	
   most	
   important	
   step	
   is	
   to	
   use	
   the	
   research	
   as	
   a	
   starting	
   point	
   to	
  
position	
   me	
   as	
   an	
   expert	
   but	
   also	
   to	
   explore	
   opportunities	
   to	
   connect	
   with	
   the	
   right	
   people	
  
in	
   the	
   sector.	
   I’d	
   like	
   to	
   create	
   a	
   one-­‐sheet	
   highlighting	
   key	
   points,	
   final	
   conclusion	
   and	
  
interviews	
   to	
   be	
   used	
   for	
   press	
   purposes.	
   I’ll	
   use	
   my	
   work	
   experience	
   from	
   the	
   Public	
  
Relations	
  and	
  Media	
  industry	
  to	
  help	
  me	
  create	
  a	
  press	
  pitch.	
  I’ll	
  use	
  the	
  contacts	
  that	
  I’ve	
  
made	
  throughout	
  this	
  year	
  to	
  help	
  indirectly	
  or	
  directly	
  promote	
  my	
  research.	
  One	
  of	
  the	
  
first	
  media	
  outlets	
  I	
  plan	
  to	
  target	
  is	
  Billboard	
  and	
  CoinDesk.com.	
  I’ll	
  look	
  to	
  talk	
  about	
  my	
  
findings	
   within	
   my	
   virtual	
   community	
   on	
   Twitter	
   and	
   LinkedIn.	
   The	
   plan	
   is	
   to	
   generate	
  
enough	
  buzz	
  where	
  I	
  can	
  gain	
  more	
  social	
  capital	
  in	
  the	
  Bitcoin	
  and	
  blockchain	
  community.	
  	
  
	
  

Contribution	
  to	
  the	
  discipline	
  and	
  profession	
  
While Taylor Swift continues to dominate the music business by penning open letters and
streaming continues to be the main form of how we consume media, researching new ways to
change the music industry should be at the forefront of innovation. This type of academic
research contributes to the music industry as a whole because se if we can prove that using
digital currency should be an important staple in then we may be on the precepous of a game
changer. Additionally this may re-oil an old machine to find new ways to gain revenue from
recorded music. Research can help implement a new culture and at minimum investigate. 	
  
	
  
Impact	
  and	
  Final	
  Thoughts	
  
One	
   of	
   the	
   biggest	
   impacts	
   that	
   this	
   research	
   had	
   on	
   me	
   was	
   the	
   learning	
   curve.	
   I	
  
jumped	
  into	
  a	
  very	
  technologically	
  based	
  industry	
  that	
  I	
  had	
  zero	
  prior	
  knowledge	
  about.	
  It	
  
also	
   challenged	
   me	
   because	
   I	
   had	
   to	
   stick	
   with	
   it	
   and	
   continue	
   with	
   enthusiasm	
   and	
  
passion.	
  	
  I	
  also	
  became	
  biased	
  to	
  think	
  that	
  Bitcoin	
  could	
  revolutionize	
  not	
  only	
  the	
  music	
  
industry	
  BUT	
  it	
  has	
  the	
  potential	
  to	
  completely	
  change	
  how	
  we	
  pay	
  for	
  goods	
  and	
  services	
  
as	
   a	
   society,	
   as	
   a	
   country	
   and	
   even	
   as	
   a	
   planet.	
   	
   That	
   idealistic	
   mindset	
   came	
   to	
   a	
   halt	
   when	
  
my	
  research	
  showed	
  me	
  that	
  Bitcoin	
  has	
  a	
  finite	
  amount	
  in	
  circulation	
  and	
  it’s	
  expected	
  to	
  
be	
   in	
   circulation	
   within	
   the	
   next	
   few	
   years.	
   However,	
   the	
   code	
   that	
   currency	
   lives	
   on	
   is	
  
open	
   sourced	
   which	
   means	
   at	
   any	
   moment,	
   some	
   genius	
   can	
   change	
   it.	
   It	
   would	
   take	
   super	
  
powerful	
   and	
   smart	
   computers	
   and	
   designers.	
   Eventually	
   though,	
   I	
   saw	
   the	
   beauty	
   in	
  
Bitcoin	
   and	
   every	
   other	
   cryptocurrency	
   because	
   of	
   the	
   revolutionizing	
   blockchain	
  
technology.	
   The	
   blockchain	
   technology	
   started	
   to	
   pop	
   up	
   more	
   and	
   more	
   and	
   makes	
   me	
  
believe	
  in	
  some	
  of	
  the	
  conclusions	
  that	
  I	
  made	
  in	
  the	
  research	
  paper.	
  	
  

	
  

I	
  felt	
  like	
  I	
  needed	
  more	
  time	
  to	
  explore	
  into	
  the	
  combining	
  of	
  these	
  three	
  industries.	
  	
  

Simultaneous	
  to	
  that,	
  I	
  also	
  didn’t	
  use	
  my	
  time	
  correctly	
  either.	
  At	
  the	
  end	
  of	
  the	
  day,	
  my	
  
interest	
   and	
   research	
   has	
   presented	
   me	
   with	
   a	
   potential	
   job	
   opportunity	
   as	
   well	
   as	
  
increasing	
  my	
  Rolodex	
  in	
  the	
  crypto	
  space.