To consider the market structure in the traditional music recording industry, oligopoly models are the applicable focus, since a small handful of companies – the Big Four currently dominates the entire industry. However, independent companies with relatively smaller size often launched new products, which attracted consumers. According to Peter Alexander, “the distribution of market share among the major and independent companies in the domestic recording industry showed fluctuations approaching the shape of a (W), with two periods of low concentration, preceded and followed by several periods of high concentration.”(1994) This essay is dedicated to discussing the balance of power and exploring payments from record companies to radio stations. In the early days of the industry (1890-1900), three companies – Victor, Columbia, Edison – produced the majority of audio-related products. This preliminary phase of extremely high industrial concentration was followed by a period of rapid technical innovation in production technology (1900–1910) and the expiration of the initial patents (1994), both of which led to the entry of new firms and a minimum of market. dispersion of shares. In the five-year period between 1914 and 1919, the number of companies producing phonographs and records grew at an estimated average annual rate of 40%. However, from 1919 to 1925, the number of record player and/or record manufacturing companies declined at an average annual rate of 14.8%. It is worth mentioning that independent businesses have grown in size and importance, and the number of companies has decreased as a result of mergers. From 1930 to 1945 the music recording industry was again highly concentrated. A collapse in record sales and a shortage of material during the Depression of the 1930s and hostility... middle of paper... professional investigations and harsher penalties for those who undertake to provide paychecks. (1994) Dominant companies may be able to prevent their independent competitors from gaining airplay by purchasing "exclusion rights" through payola. Perhaps they both buy radio airplay and deny airtime to new entrants and fringe companies through payola. By raising the costs of new entrants and even excluding them from the airwaves, large companies' payola effectively prevents their potential competitors from entering the market. Government regulation can have a substantial impact on the market structure of the music recording industry, as some laws have increased the cost of payroll. By preventing smaller competitors from gaining radio airplay, it is plausible to see greater industry concentration and fewer new product releases than a competitive structure would provide..