The End Of The Line For Allofmp3.com?

from the investigation-begins... dept

The question of whether or not the Russian site Allofmp3.com is illegal has gone on for quite some time, but it looks like Moscow police have finally been called in to investigate. It seemed generally accepted that the site was legal in Russia. They had the right licenses in place to sell music online, and that allowed them to sell MP3s at incredibly cheap prices. What hasn't been as clear is whether or not the site is legal outside of Russia. However, if you consider the fact that you're buying the songs in Russia (the server is there) and then exporting them out to wherever you are (and there are no laws against exporting music tracks legally purchased), then it certainly seems legal. Also, if the recording industry actually does shut down Allofmp3.com it will show, once again, how the industry misunderstands the market they're facing. Allofmp3.com has shown that people are quite willing to pay for music online, when it comes at a decent price and in a format with no restrictions.
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  • identicon
    lemon obrien, 22 Feb 2005 @ 4:33pm

    t think no one cares

    except two of three russian dudes sitting in jail cause the roasted the system by trying make a business.

    it might be time for someone to fire the CEOs and change the directorships of the entertaiment companies which hinder capitalism. I'm an American, so i say shoot the commy bastards.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      monkeyb0y, 23 Feb 2005 @ 6:03pm

      Re: t think no one cares

      Nobody is in jail, they are potentially being investigated. I think that it is perfectly reasonable to pay radio royalties for a net feed of compressed music.

      Of course people should actually start using legal alternatives instead of just bitching about the entertainment industry.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Beck, 22 Feb 2005 @ 8:33pm

    Better Hurry


    Darn, first the Napster "hack" gets squashed by AOL, and now this!

    I better go and use up the balance in my VIP account pretty quickly!

    On the point about music at a decent price in an open format, I'll say this: I used iTunes before I heard about allofmp3.com. I have spent a lot more money at allofmp3.com than I did at iTunes. I'm willing to take a flyer on a song when it's only ten cents, and I often found myself saying "what the heck" and downloading the whole album. I believe that if the price of downloads at iTunes and other online stores was lower they would more than make it up in increased volume, resulting in greater overall revenue. The problem is that they have to keep the price high to protect the retail CD channel.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Kevin Allen, 24 Feb 2005 @ 4:53am

      Re: Better Hurry

      I am also hurrying to get as much as possible. I spent quite a bit at Wal-Mart's online store, only to find that the liscences were so restrictive that I can't even play the songs on other computers within my home network, which means no love for the wireless notebook. That's a shame...a dirty, dirty shame. As far as the "legalness" of importing illegal copyrighted material into America...think again. I am in the Army, stationed in Germany. If I get caught with bootleg CD's or DVD's from some third world country the Army is kind enough to send me to, they will be confiscated, and I could be fined upon reentry to the US of A...

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    jonny blowww, 10 Nov 2006 @ 3:27pm

    Re: Better Hurry by Kevin Allen

    yeah, well maybe it wasn't so smart to join the Army, eh?
    and I'm sure glad that our country is being protected by some dude surfing the web at 5 in the morning!

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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