Netlabels and democratization of the recording industry

Netlabels are platforms for online distribution and promotion of music released for free under Creative Commons or similar licenses. They are part of the free music scene, which has been developing dynamically since the advent of the Internet and digitalization. The article employs the concept of democratization to analyze the emergence of netlabels and their impact on the dissemination of music. This paper shows that although the democratizing potential of new technologies is to a certain extent disappointing, grassroots free music movements, such as netlabels, spontaneously build institutions that fulfill focusing and filtering functions to help artists and listeners find what they are looking for in the hyper-abundant musical marketplace