In a recent article about the state of the music industry, Reuters took a look at the problems the industry is having, and how it plans to get itself out of its current rut. Most interesting, however, is a quote from Sonyis US Chief Executive and Chairman, Howard Stringer. He calls Appleis iTunes Music Store a "wake-up call," and said that "Steve Jobs has liberated us." From the article:

S. Chief Executive and Chairman Howard Stringer said at a media breakfast that the April launch of Apple Computer Inc.is online music service, iTunes, which lets music fans download some songs from all five major record labels for less than a $1 each, was a "sea change" and a "wake-up call."

"Steve Jobs (Apple CEO) has liberated us," Stringer told media executives and journalists at a breakfast hosted by The New Yorker and Syracuse Universityis Newhouse School.

"Weire all doing the same things and providing our own solutions ... In the technology age, everything can be duplicated quickly."

The article goes on to discuss how Mr. Stringer endorses the pursuit of litigation against music thieves and pirates, and other related issues. You can read the full article at Yahoo! Finance.