The Guardian has a nice spotlight on Sony BMG UK chief Ged Doherty. The exec recounts the industry's mistakes, insists the power shift is good for majors (I agree...it'll spur innovation) and has a good deal of optimism. All in all, it's a realistic view of the next five or six years. Here's a sample:

"We're not an industry that has generally been run by forward-thinking people. The CD boom papered over lots of cracks. The current generation are paying the price for the mistakes of our forefathers," he argues. ...

But he is convinced that remodelled major labels, offering a balance of local expertise and global reach, have a future. He says relationships with artists in the digital age will rely on deals being "fair, open and transparent".

Fifty-five per cent of Sony's artists are now signed to "extended" deals that involve an element other than recorded music, he adds. "I've seen God knows how many mobile-phone companies, hamburger companies and drinks companies start labels. They've all folded because they don't know what they're doing."