Students put their own spin on downloading music

USA today ^ | 4.20.03 | Jefferson Graham

[rwfromkansas]

The artists barely get a thing from CD's compared to everyone else.

[Joe_October]

Sorry, but you and I missed the new law that it's okay to steal if you are stealing from someone who is a jerk.

[arielb]

imagine what will happen to saddam hussein's mp3 collection!

[Bon mots]

I have mixed feelings about it. Leftist celebrities deserve to lose every penny. Download your movies with WinMX. Don't send any more money to Hollywood. Download the Blixie Hicks, Boner (from a group named after military aircraft) and their ilk... don't send them a dime.

Hit 'em where it hurts.

If they keep their trap shut about politics and just shut up and sing/play, then I buy their music. Otherwise, I just download it.

The minute they begin spouting off about economics, politics, etc. they've entered the public domain. RIP 'EM!

[Orangedog]

So, by that logic, department stores that still allow customers to browse through merchandise on the shelves, a business model at least 50 years old, shares responsibility for shoplifters. uh-huh.

A swing and a miss!

Apples and oranges...two completely different business models and chains of distribution. One still still works, therefore age does not matter. The other does not still work because advances in technology allowed for other alternatives. The industry refused to explore that avenue and their business has suffered for it.

[Lhatch]

Sure you can. It's easy. Its called File Delete.

[Conservative4Ever]

thanks for your thoughts...you have stated it very clearly. It begs the question...how do the artists get compensation for their creative works? Each artist have a website for downloading songs at a nominal fee? This would of course eliminate the record company as we know it...not necessarily a bad thing. The artist would have to stand on his work..not the promotional engine of the record label. Promoters for live concerts would encourage quality material and showmanship to create a fan base. I agree the artist should be remunerated for his artistic effort, but how to achieve this fair and equitable solution is a problem.

Red

[Conservative4Ever]

I should have read further down...you pretty much stated what my thoughts were. :)

Red

[Not Insane]

__But when you don't buy it and you spread it around, it's a problem.__

Like making copies of articles from the newspaper.

Heck, like making copies of music from the radio or cable "radio."

[Orangedog]

Whether or not the record companies embraced online music distribution is irrelevant. It does not matter who distributes the material.

From a purely legal standpoint, I would agree. However, in the real world their choice of business model does matter. I'm talking about the real world where a bad decision can cost you bundle, and that includes copies or their wares flooding the black market. I'm not defending people who swap music files. That is simply a weakness in their business model that they refused to adapt to. If a store owner had never put a lock on his store's front door and people started walking in after he went home and started helping themselves to his merchandise, the police would take a report and tell him to put a lock on his door. Yes, it's still theft, but there is a certain amount of blame for the business owner who refuses to put a lock on his stores front door.

Once a single track is converted to mp3 format, it can be copied ad inifinium, with no payment to the record company. Already we have witnessed a 30% decline in "legitimate" sales.

If you really take a look at the "legitimate" sales from the pre-napster to the post-napster time scale, record sales were actually increasing all the way through to the year that napster was finally shut down. The record companies were meeting or surpassing their own sales objectives. Then, about the time the plug was pulled, record sales started to tank. Maybe the cost of hardware went down. Maybe it was just that the economy went down... or maybe the record companies closed off the most widely used tool for people to be exposed to their product. As for myself (and the people I know) there were quite a few songs that I downloaded from napster, listened to and usually I would go out and buy the CD. There were also a lot of people who just replaced their legitimate cd purchases with downloads. But not all of them would have bought the CD in any event. IMO, I think a lot of what the industry is claiming to reduced revenues do to theft is really an excuse to their shareholders for what is likely reduced sales do to poor business decisions and a bad economy...But reasonable people can disagree.

[Not Insane]

>>So, by that logic, department stores that still allow customers to browse through merchandise on the shelves, a business model at least 50 years old, shares responsibility for shoplifters.<<

Department store items are tangible products. You can hold them in your hand.

RECORDED music has become the first "free commodity" of the 21st century.

I am a musician. I expect to make money from live concerts, etc. The recorded version of my music is for promotional purposes only.

Only LIVE music is worth paying for. Technology has simply swung the pendulum back to the consumer.

[Minutemen]

"This is exactly like going to the library. Do I have to pay to check out a book?"

By that reasoning, I shouldn't have to pay the dealer for an automobile either. After all, I just want to "borrow" a car for awhile.

[Not Insane]

>>From now on, recorded music is free -- and the musicians who make should spend their time and efforts thinking of ways to profit in an environment that reflects that fact. Those that fail to do so will vanish. <<

Precicely. Those who try to stop it will and should be labelled ludites.

I am a musician and do not expect the sale of recorded music to be a source of income.

[FierceDraka]

The music industry's claim that Internet piracy is responsible for sales falling off is absuloutly laughable.

Consider this: The VAST majority of Internet users connect via dial-up networking. Dial-up! 56kbs, unreliable dial-up! It would take years to download enough content to equal the amount of lost sales the recoring industy is reporting for one year.

The fact is that the quality of the music (vomit) they've been producing is just sad. Would you go out and buy a CD or tape that you know beforehand sucks? Probably not!

When a company produces a lousy product, people generally won't spend their hard-earned dollars to own it. The music industry is bound to the law of supply and demand, same as every other business.

More and more, independent artists are able to scrape up the cash to not only produce their own music with production values equal to that of a big studio, but to buy commercial time on cable TV to market it.

The recording industry is just going to have to accept the fact that they have no one to blame for their so-called losses but themselves. Dial-up... (snicker)

[Not Insane]

>>This is theft pure and simple and should be punished to the fullest extent of the law!<<

Is not, is not!

[Not Insane]

>>This is theft pure and simple and should be punished to the fullest extent of the law! <<

Have you ever broken the speed limit?

Thought so.

[Paul C. Jesup]

How does the RIAA expect to gain fear and respect if it sues for example, a single college student for 97.8 BILLION DOLLARS!!

The judge who does get this case is going to look at the RIAA lawyers and say,"you are asking FOR HOW MUCH!?!', he or she then is going to throw out the case and maybe FINE the RIAA.

Even the 9th curcuit is NOT this crazy.

[discostu]

Of course once the bottom drops out of the CD market then the bottom will drop out of the entire music industry. Without the CD to push a band will no longer be able to build the reputation necessary to have a large profitable tour (where the real money for the band has always been). Then it's bye bye full time music makers, making music will once again be a hobby that some people do during their free time.

All this because some people just don't understand what the word "theft" means.

[Paul C. Jesup]

You say that as if that were a bad thing.

Some of the best music/songs ever produced were made as a hobby, not a job.

[Not Insane]

__After all, I just want to "borrow" a car for awhile.__

Will you return it in "identical" condition with no mileage, cylinder, tire or seat wear?

Will he be able to "loan" the car to millions of other people at the same time you're using it?