Study Finds 63% of Core Music Buyers Prefer Music from the Past


New York, NY (PRWEB) August 15, 2012

In an industry where a small percentage of polished, brand new, plugged-in and tech-savvy artists, think Justin Bieber and his 26 million Twitter followers, gain the majority of attention from music media and industry, the Gracie Management Poll finds that a strong majority of core music buyers, defined by age as being between 18-34, think contemporary music is not as good as older music. 63% stated that music today is worse than it has been in the past, perhaps demonstrating a trend for the industry to invest in greater artist development, along with providing new opportunities for older artists still working.

I think this finding helps to explain why we have seen an increase in the sales of catalog albums, which cannot be occurring solely based upon people aged 35 and older. Core music buyers, who are between 18 and 34 years-old, are playing a role, too. This is quite exciting and can help bring new life to many older artists as compared to past decades when younger people would simply reject these musicians as being their parents or grandparents music. These older artists have a good level of cache, and it is easier to get exposed to their music with streaming services such as Spotify, says Chasson Gracie, Founder and CEO of Gracie Management.

Survey Methods

Results for the Gracie Management Poll are based upon online interviews that were conducted on June 29, 2012 among 521 adults between the age of 18-34, living in the United States and part of an opt-in panel. Results are based on the total sample of US online adults between 18-34; one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is

SunGard Launches New Version of its Ambit Core Banking Solution for Balance Sheet Management

Kuala Lumpur (PRWEB) June 24, 2012

SunGard Launches New Version of its Ambit Core Banking Solution for Balance Sheet Management

SunGard has unveiled a new version of Ambit Core Banking, its universal core banking system, to help banks stabilize earnings and respond to margin pressure. Ambit Core Banking now includes balance sheet and risk management tools embedded into the core banking system in addition to retail deposits and lending, commercial banking, trade finance, and treasury management.

Providing balance sheet and risk management tools as an embedded component of a core banking system will help banks have a more accurate view of risk across the enterprise. Ambit Core Banking uses a single data model to help improve data consistency, accuracy and transparency of balance sheet information as an integrated component of core banking infrastructure.

In addition to providing accurate balance sheet and risk management data, Ambit Core Banking also offers workflow tools to help banks embed risk management processes into decision making across the organization. It helps banks interpret and use balance sheet risk information for improved strategic decision making, such as discontinuing unprofitable channels, and adjusting risk appetite or capital on reserve.

Michael Araneta, research director at IDC Financial Insights said Multiple post-crisis challenges have exposed the flaws in legacy architectures and driven a renewed focus on systems modernization. But today the biggest drivers for core systems transformation are underpinned by the need for more rigorous risk management practices, stringent regulatory compliance capabilities and the health and stability of the balance sheet a banks single most important asset.

Ambit Core Banking is based on the Banking Industry Architecture Network (BIAN) standards and built using a componentized service-orientated architecture, allowing banks to implement only the functionality they require in a manageable and phased way. This approach also enhances a banks organizational agility as it helps the bank to adapt more quickly to market changes.

Hans Tesselaar, executive director of BIAN said, “Banks are under pressure to deliver innovative products that enhance the customer experience, while also increasing flexibility and reducing costs. Adopting a service-oriented architecture will help banks migrate to a more modern infrastructure in a measured and managed way.

David Hamilton, president of SunGards banking business, said, Banks are reevaluating, and in some cases rebuilding, their operational models in order to help them restore profitability. The role of a core banking system is no longer simply that of a transaction processing engine, but is the primary provider of data into balance sheet management systems. The ability for banks to embed balance sheet management strategies across the organization will become essential to the ongoing stability of the bank.

About BIAN

BIAN is a not for profit organization which seeks to accelerate the adoption of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) in the banking industry by promoting convergence towards a common services landscape and semantic standards which makes it easier and more cost-effective to integrated such services.

About SunGards Ambit

SunGard’s Ambit is a banking solution suite for retail, commercial and private banks. It provides banking professionals with solutions that support front-, middle- and back-office operations, as well as solutions for financial management, risk and performance. Ambit helps banks retain and acquire customers, improve staff efficiency and effectively measure and allocate their capital. For more information, visit http://www.sungard.com/ambit.

About SunGard

SunGard is one of the worlds leading software and technology services companies. SunGard has more than 17,000 employees and serves approximately 25,000 customers in more than 70 countries. SunGard provides software and processing solutions for financial services, education and the public sector. SunGard also provides disaster recovery services, managed IT services, information availability consulting services and business continuity management software. With annual revenue of about $ 4.5 billion, SunGard is the largest privately held software and services company and was ranked 434 on the Fortune 500 in 2011. Look for us wherever the mission is critical. For more information, please visit http://www.sungard.com

Trademark Information: SunGard, the SunGard logo and Ambit are trademarks or registered trademarks of SunGard Data Systems Inc. or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries. All other trade names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.