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.