Since I’m unable to comment on the BusinessWeek blog entry, I’ll post my response here. Here’s the question posed by Heather Green:

Is there a way to track the growth of the creation and distribution online of music, videos, audio shows from individuals (outside the walls of the traditional studios, networks, and labels)?

I don’t see a way at present to track this growth (which means tracking the content itself), but this seems related to something I posted a few days ago: “Backdoor Content Channels“.

If virtual spaces (MySpace, CyWorld, aso) continue to morph into suites of hosted services, I suspect those services will wind up tracking the content users make available to others. Currently that would primarily be text, graphics, music, video. But as these virtual spaces become increasingly immersive, I see it including 3D content; files for use in 3D virtual spaces or for actual fabrication.

The real problem in my opinion is determining which content is original and which is copied or pirated. People already make lots of stuff “available” that they didn’t create. And I’d guess a significant portion of them would rather that no one know; look at the creative names people use for copied music in order to avoid anti-piracy efforts. So beyond the technical issue of tracking and cataloguing, there’s community resistance. It is a tough nut. And it’s going to get worse .