Latest Threat To The Music Industry: CDs
from the lalalala dept
We've talked before about the overhyped CD swapping site LaLa, and why it seemed unlikely to succeed. Services of this nature -- there have been several other attempts at the exact same thing -- tend to get filled up with the junk that people want to get rid of, as opposed to the CDs they really like, making them as popular as the dollar bin at the CD store. But a new report from IDC is sounding the alarm bells and warning the music industry that because these CDs are DRM-free (as virtually all are), people could copy them onto their computer before trading them. In fact, the IDC analyst is probably right that people will copy the CDs before trading, but then the whole of the used CD business is a threat too. And under that logic, even retailers of new CDs are contributing to the piracy problem. But then everything is already on P2P sites, which only need one person to upload an album for it to propagate; yet another person uploading Dark Side of the Moon, whether they got it through LaLa or Amazon, does nothing. If the music industry were serious about beating piracy, there's an easy solution: stop selling music. But assuming they don't want to take this drastic measure, they should look for fresh ways of selling music, as opposed to worrying that every new distribution model might contribute to piracy.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
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Re: Public Library
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Re: Re: Public Library
When I was in university back in the last 80's, everybody in residence copied each others CDs onto cassette tapes. But we also bought a crapload of CDs. I can't recall going to the record store and NOT buying something. If DRM existed back then, it was unlikely that I would end up buying the CD version of the casette tapes. Maybe a few more CDs based on the money that I spent on buying blank cassette tapes, but nothing substantial. My budget was fixed. For me to buy more CDs would have meant cutting back on drinking or some other activity.
In fact, because my musical tastes were exanded by the cassette tapes, I bought CDs and attended concerts that I would have never bought or attended in the first place.
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Re: Re: Public Library
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Re:
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i listen to them once and only once, and then they are copied to my computer.
why pay when you can get for free?
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What music?
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Copying CDs
Actually, one of the first things I do with a CD is rip it to MP3. Whether I trade/loan/sell/swap the CD is irrelevant. Most of the time I keep the CD as I like to have a hardcopy of the original along with the artwork and whatnot that comes with the CD.
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Re: Copying CDs
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Re:
But that's only if you're going to be evil about it, and lord knows record companies woud prefer us not to have the choice of being evil or not, they want that privelige (sp?) all to themselves :-)
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Sort of like the old out-dated Circuit City Divx... you buy a CD and you can listen to each song X times... then it's $Y per listen after that.
Only it won't be cds, it'll be some proprietary format that only plays in their player that's somehow wired to the internet.
I figure we're about 2 years away from this type of business model.
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I am alarmed!
Surely, music without DRM spells the end of Western Civilization.
Although I sure get tired of looking up the all the artists and agencies I have to pay every time I absent-mindedly hum a copyrighted tune...
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Maybe they should stop pushing crap music on the world if they want to increase sales.
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Re:
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Re: Re: #19
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Re:
There is a lot of great music out there, worthy enough to even pay for. Some of that music even plays in Stereo on FM radio stations.
You need to go eat some fibre and have a good poop, give your Beach Boys album a break!
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Idiots
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I figure we're about 2 years away from this type of business model."
I LOVE music, but there is no way in HELL I would pour money down a drain on something like this. I can get by with what I have or without anything at all if need be.
I support artists because I love music. Fuck the corporations and the greedy metallica types. I'll pay you what I think your shit is worth, otherwise I don't want it. Too bad for you, eh?
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Re:
And what would stop someone from opening an audio recording program and setting the record method to Wave in the recording control and record it while it's playing? As someone mentioned before, as long as there's sound it can be recorded.
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Common sense...
And I think it should be obvious to the RIAA by now that no matter how much they prosecute P2P users and companies, all they are accomplishing is driving the networks a little further underground and making users harder and harder to track. The RIAA and MPAA are probably directly responsible for most of the inovation in P2P networks in recent years, especially in the area of privacy.
So they are wasting money on researching DRM, and prosecuting P2P users, and driving up the costs of CD's and Movies to pay for it all. And they wonder why sales are declining. They can't possibly do anything put piss off their customers if the keep doing this. Common sense says they need to either:
A.) Stop spending money on these things, so they can drop the cost of their product and see if that brings customers back.
or
B.) Spend the money on researching and developing a new buisness model that involves convenient online distribution at a reasonable price.
Personally, I refuse to purchase CD's from major labels, because I won't help them fund a futile war on P2P technology and research on how to restrict my fair use. I'll wait for someone at the companies to grow a brain and get some common sense.
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Re: Common sense...
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Rootkit
That can be stoped with a root kit. Not that I think anyone will ever be brave enough to release another cd with a root kit on it, but they can stop you from recording that way....
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Re: Rootkit
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Re: Re: Rootkit
now the headphones report back they are actually headphones and not a line in lead so thats out.
of course you could always just use a microphone.. until the format after that (released in conjunction with laws to ban microphones) works round that...
this is a battle these dipsticks won't win. make what they sell worth the price and the problem goes away.
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As I've always said...
The music industry should concentrate on funding and selling music. Stay away from the anti-piracy stuff. Yeah people will steal as they always do and you will spend more money trying to end all piracy than you will make by doing what you do best.
Sure, it's wise to create deterrents and preventative measures but to actively and offensively go out to hunt them down?
Nothing will become of this behavior other than cause divisions.
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Holy crap a lot of comments
(new) person buys a cd/game and pays the clerk at the store. The store makes $$ and so does the company that produced the cd/game
(used) person buys a cd/game and pays the clerk at the counter. The store makes $$ but the company that produced the cd/game never sees a dime.
I am not positive but I dont think the used stores have to pay royalties on anything do they?
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Re: Holy crap a lot of comments
No. See the Doctrine of First Sale for more.
Once a copyright owner sells a tangible copy, they lose all rights to that tangible copy. They are owed no further monies for furhter trading, and cannot dictate in any way shape or form how it is further re-distributed. The only thing they can do is buy the copy back and destroy it (or resell it).
And someone said we americans dont have any consumer protection laws... (ok, so the DMCA tried to take most of them away, but we at least we still have that one, australia doesnt!)
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What a Pity
What has this world come to? Music is like free speech, it should be free to hear, and free to express. Turning Music into a business ruins the whole point making it / listening to it. It shouldn't be treaded upon lightly.
If we would take the Business side out of music, people might actually ENJOY buying a new album when it came out. Reason? The music would be GOOD, people would have a DESIRE to own a piece of it, and we all would CRAVE that wonderful glow music would give us upon listening.
There is NOTHING like putting in a new cd of a band who you know makes music for the purpose of making music not money, and basking in the wonderfulness of the filling and renewing of your very soul
I think the RIAA and MPAA should back off, and work to stop and sue those who just want fame and fast cash instead of good music. And all will be well when they form the business model of letting music SELL ITS SELF, instead of...
"pushing crap music on the world"
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Re: What a Pity
/waves at the nice hippie!
Guess what, this is a capitalist (sp?) world we live in. Free speech does not, and has NEVER meant free to hear. The Speaker has always had the right to charge to be heard. Free speech means he has the RIGHT to say what is on his mind.
Music has absolutely no need to be free to be listened to. (Neither do movies.. However, you should be paid handsomely for every episode of friends you have ever been forced to watch by a friend/loved one....)
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recording
I also have one suggestion to the music industry, CD's last too long remember the days of the needle wearing thru a poor quality vinal LP or the magnetic loss of an audio cassette. Just think go back to the old days of recording and people might have to buy new copies of your crappy new music after they leave it in the car and warp the media every couple of months.
LOL just kidding.
Locking media into a streaming only wont stop recording it into mp3 either unless they force sound card manufacuters to stop putting features like a line in or record wave out or mixed output whatever its as easy as play/record. Hey reminds me of the days I used to record radio onto cassette. shhhh dont tell the music industry I recorded fly like an eagle back in the 1980's.
The root cause to all problems is GREED, music industrialists want more money money money and people want more stuff stuff stuff which drives people to crave money money money for more stuff stuff stuff.......
Got to go, need to get some money to buy some stuff...
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Interesting...
Piracy is going to happen. Deal with it. Find a way to make the consumer WANT to buy the real version. Something like special artwork or stuff like that. Remember when everything was on vinyl and artists actually used it as a canvas to impress us??? That's what made it worth buying.
As far as a capitalist world??? No. If we were in a capitalist world, then the economy would dictate how much things cost instead of the government. If you think the economy is leading the prices...you're mistaken. The world leans more towards socialst then capitalist.
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Re: Interesting...
Governemnt and money were NEVER intended to mix, not even by the founding fathers themselves.
It was only around the turn of the last century where banks and the wealthy snuck into our government and mixed the pot to such a degree that we no longer even have a resemblance to a democratic government rooted in the constitution.
Once upon a time there was a civilisation ruled by law and honour. The law worked because its institutions were authorative, and through general concensus they were recognised as such. They were honoured. Then one day the rulers of this great civilisation, so sure of their power, respect and the absolute faith the people had in their institutions laid back on their laurels and decided that for a little temporary wealth they could auction off that trust.
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the future
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YES!
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Music
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2 things.
second. the music industry is NOT GOING to get it. it's too big. These are public companies, which must answer to shareholders for their profits (or lack thereof). Shareholders don't like to hear that they lost thousands of dollars because the company took a risk on an up and coming innovator in music. They'd rather milk the tried and true crap that they know they can push on impressionable teenagers.
Large corporations being in charge of choosing whos music deserves to be heard, will never lead to anything but over-produced, generic crap. Real good music is out there, but it's not in the mainstream. it's underground. it hasn't been mainstream since the early 70's. Once classic rock exploded and companies made millions on rock, they weren't willing to let go of it and allow innovation to continue. Same crap as microsoft not wanting to let go of control of windows, for fear that they wouldn't be able to control the industries innovation, and therefore, be left behind from lack of agility.
However, I think, in the end, as the internet invades more homes, and more people begin to understand technology, slowly, they will be left behind anyway. In 10 years, there will be new ways to get famous as a band, that don't require selling your soul to a major corporation. It's starting already, in the form of places like myspace. Right now people view them mostly as "high school kids" on there, making friends and dating, but a lot of musicians are on there, social networking their way to fame and fortune. It needs a better model to support it, but the grass roots movement is there right now.
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The biggest threat
And lets face it a drug addict without their fix can be a scary thing and the government knows this...
www.tinfoilhats.com
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Why CDs?
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http://www.dollaraperson.com
Sure it might just be a lame attempt for me to pick up an extra dollar, but what the hell.
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What if...
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the reason that music companies are afraid is...
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Re: the reason that music companies are afraid is.
Their executives might learn a lesson from Adolph Hitler:
After the fall of the THIRD RIAACH,
Crawl down deep inside your corporate bunkers, surround yourself with your dearest attorneys and bite the pill.
P.S. Reich was deliberately misspelled for all you English geniuses (just in case).
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Free music
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lala
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It's about time....
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My comments on these comments
If the music you want is not worth what they are charging, don't buy it. If everyone did that, a CD would be priced more reasonably or have more value (better mix of songs). Because something is overpriced does not justify stealing it!
You may be young and don't understand this right now, but some day, you will make something or be involved in making something. You may get "downsized" because people start stealing the product and justifying it by saying it costs too much. You will feel different!
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And no I do not share them online. (In case you are wondering : -)
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Well said
Ripping a CD, selling it and keeping the copy is a less defensible position.
During the vinyl days, the music business got used to people buying the same record several times as they wore out; digital music does not wear out, and they are having some difficulty adjusting to this.
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The Fine Print
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All of these are valid, however
I have heard, and sometimes witnessed, the horror stories that a record label can wreak upon a newly signed band. Some stories of the worst accounts are to be found on the internet if you search around. Here's the deal:
they send someone who seems young and cool, the kind of guy a band would least expect to screw them over. The problem is, the guy is just an assistant for the real guy, they hire him BECAUSE he's naive. Even HE doesn't realize he's about to royally screw you over. Then they get you to sign a contract. Except what you sign isn't a contract for how much money your going to earn, how many records you'll produce, etc. It's just a contract saying that you agree to sign with them. Essentially, they trick young, naive artists into signing a contract that forces them to only sign with that label, before they've even agreed to any terms. That band is then forced to negotiate with THAT label, come hell or high water, until a real contract is made. The band's time is consumed with the negotiations, for months, until they've lapsed their practice schedule, had numerous fights, and generally don't want to play together, or don't play very well anymore. they then go into a studio, unprepared, and cut a mediocre record, in a too short schedule, and get a tiny little cut because they signed away their right to take their business elsewhere, before they even had a chance to negotiate the terms of their payment.
Because of this ungodly lame process (there are other ways to get signed that are safer, people like me know this, know the legal, and won't get screwed, but young high school kids getting their first break don't know any better, and it kills any artist to see a band with huge potential ruined because they didn't know what they were getting into). MOST OF THE BEST BANDS IN THE LAST 30 YEARS, YOU"VE NEVER EVEN HEARD OF. They tore up the amateur scene, built a huge underground following, without anyones help, because they were just that good. And then died out at the hands of the record label, before their first disc even hit store shelves. This is 90% of all the best bands that have existed, since about 1965.
EVERY experienced artist knows that it works this way, and that's why every single one of us simply CANNOT WAIT for the day when we don't need them anymore. The labels see that day approaching. And they ARE afraid. It's one thing to have your product stolen, or to lose a chunk of your consumer base. Those are certainly bad things, but you can recover from them, by rethinking your business model. But, a far more critical hit to their business, is if your product itself simply gets up, and walks away.
Equivalent to a software company, imagine if all the programmers came in one morning, and discovered that ALL the code, and ALL the docs, had simply been deleted. It's a death blow to the software company. Forget rethinking the sales model, or the marketing model, their ability to even produce a viable product is now gone.
What this means, is that it reduces these companies to only one aspect of their business: advertising. When Bands no longer need the label to finance their album, or their concerts, it no longer becomes worth it for the bands to give a major share of their earnings (and control of their creative process) to what is essentially a middle man. The bands can now earn far more money, by directly hiring an ad agency to promote them. They pay the ad agency, and now the BAND is in control of their destiny. GREAT for bands. bad for record labels. The days of the specialized record label are almost over. Right now, the label arranges everything, and gives the band a cut (royalties). You'll hear far more good music coming out when the bands are in control, and just pay for services, based on how much they are earning.
finally, as an artist, I most definitely encourage music sharing. It would only serve to make me famous without needing to sign with a label. As many artists are now realizing, if they go into it expecting that situation, they can plan up front to make their money from concerts and merchandising, and do VERY well indeed (mostly because the label isn't hogging 95% of the profits).
Note that this is the exact situation that the Movie industry is also in, and their tactics for survival will need to be the same. Become a service to the artist, instead of owning and controlling the artist. The artist now has a choice to maintain control, and every artist (by the very nature of a creative thinker) will want to maintain that control, if given the choice. And the reasons for wanting that control are simple. One only need look at all the crap music, and crap movies, that get made when artists give up that control.
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Re: All of these are valid, however
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Heh...
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Re: Heh...
Thanks for the lengthy explanation but, in the end, I found it educational and meaningful.
In fact, your single posting is the only thing that makes sense in this entire blog.
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open up new music
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lemme ask you a question? why did you or your acquaintances sign deals with major labels?
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"When the music's over, turm out the lights"
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Why don't they sue Tower for illegal file sharing?
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