First discovered at the age of twelve on YouTube by a huge following of fans, Justin later signed a recording contract with Usher and soon became a mega-music sensation.

But Bieber's stardom also raises a troubling question: why hasn't the music industry discovered more talent on YouTube? Just one Justin Bieber in five years of YouTube's existence is not a good percentage, given the millions of videos and many amateur singers on YouTube.

So what should the music industry do? It's simple. The music industry should use YouTube and other social media more proactively to find new talent -- and a greater diversity of singers. Instead of sitting back and waiting for the next Justin Bieber to bubble up from the crowd, the music industry should set up an official "talent scout" channel on YouTube for amateurs from all different backgrounds and genres to share their music videos and "try out" for recording contracts.

Allowing people to make free cover videos--just as Bieber did--would be a win-win for the music industry. Not only would the industry encourage a greater, more diverse pool of new talent to be discovered, but it also could monetize those music videos through YouTube's ad system that inserts ads into videos and enables the direct purchase of the original artist's recording of the musical work contained in a video.

If the music industry fails to act soon, it may well be too late. The Justin Biebers of the world will eventually realize they don't need the music industry to develop a worldwide fan base.