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Author
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Topic: Recording Industry to Sue Internet Song Swappers
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K
VoivodFan
Member # 6
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posted June 25, 2003 14:52
    
By Andy Sullivan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A recording-industry trade group said on Wednesday it plans to sue hundreds of individuals who illegally distribute copyrighted songs over the Internet, expanding its anti-piracy fight into millions of homes. The Recording Industry Association of America said it hopes to curb illegal song downloading by tracking down the heaviest users of popular "peer to peer" services like Kazaa and suing them for thousands of dollars in damages. "We're going to begin taking names and preparing lawsuits against peer-to-peer network users who are illegally making available a substantial number of music files to millions of other computer users," RIAA President Cary Sherman said in a conference call. The RIAA believes the popular peer-to-peer services, which allow users to copy music, movies and other files from each others' hard drives, are partly responsible for a decline in CD sales, and has aggressively sought to shut them down. But until now the industry has shied away from directly suing users, opting instead to send them online warnings and clutter up the networks with dummy files. Some advocates have argued the networks provide a harmless way for music fans to discover new artists, but Sherman and other music-industry figures likened them to shoplifters who steal groceries and other tangible goods. A recent court ruling makes it easier to track down copyright violators through their Internet providers, and Sherman said investigators would begin to track down hundreds of users who make their digital-music collections available for copying. Lawsuits asking for statutory damages of $150,000 per count will likely be filed in six to eight weeks, he said. The industry will not initially target those who do not allow others to copy their music collections, he said. Music fans who wish to avoid legal action should change the settings on their peer-to-peer software to block access to their hard drives, or uninstall the software completely, he said. The RIAA has managed to shut down Napster Inc., the first peer-to-peer service, and several successors. But the trade group suffered a setback last month when a judge ruled that two other networks, Grokster and Morpheus, should not be shut down because they do not control what is traded on their systems. "The RIAA, in their infinite wisdom, has decided to not only alienate their own customers but attempt to drive them into bankruptcy through litigation. So therefore they probably won't be able to afford to buy any music even if they want to," said Grokster President Wayne Rosso, who added he does not support copyright infringement. Four college students agreed last month to pay between $12,000 and $17,500 each after the RIAA sued them for allegedly operating illegal song-swapping networks on campus. RIAA members include AOL Time Warner Inc (NYSE:AOL - news). Vivendi Universal (NYSE:V - news), Sony Corp (news - web sites) (6758.T)., Bertelsmann AG (news - web sites) (BERT.UL), and EMI Group Plc (news - web sites) (EMI.L). ::: GOD DAMN THE RIAA!!!!
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KnickerZohnonnof
VoivodFan
Member # 272
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posted June 27, 2003 06:36
I am torn here.I can't stand the fact we are charged so much for something that costs so little to make. I think the artists are largely exploited and the only real winners are the people who make nothing but money out of someone else's talent. This truly stinks. Also CD's cost around 50p (75c) to make, yet in the UK the average sale price through the retailer for any music that isn't 'chart' is a massive £17. Vinyl, which is massively more expensive to make is actually cheaper! Now you know why the record companies wanted, or more accurately forced CD upon us...to increase their profits! People didn't stop buying vinyl, it was simply taken away as a choice, and therefore a reason was created to stop producing it. This is one of the major reasons why I support vinyl so enthusiastically, because the politics behind all this was purely about making money for the major label bigwigs, not about music itslef. However I do have some sympathy with the view that peer to peer music sharing is helping to kill music. It's one thing to listen to a file or two to see if you would like it, and for sites to provide bootlegs of concerts we would otherwise never hear, that to me is valuable and should be encouraged. Indeed Metallica themselves did so during the Justice and Nowhere else to roam tours. It is exactly how I use mp3's. But it's entirely another for people to basically provide entire albums for the masses to download at their leisure. Not only does the record company miss out, which I don't really lose much sleep over, but so too does the artist and that's what bothers me. My fear is if this goes too far, bands like VoiVod, who are innovators on the fringes of the music scene with a small fanbase, will be unable to break onto the wider scene and sell records because the people who control the record industry will simply shut off these 'loss-making' avenues. Thus people like us who look to the fringes for our music will lose out. The core of the problem is that too much of the music industry is in the control, and therefore profit, of a handful of individuals. Only if ventures like AOL/Time Warner crash with massive debts, and other massive partnerships whose sole aim is to make music more expensive, suffer the same fate will any kind of redressing of this balance take place. I also think it's up to the big money making artists of the music world to take a stand for the up and coming talent. After all they were all once small bands trying to break out to a wider audience. If they care so passionately for the future of music, as so many of them say as much, then they should be prepared to get a fairer deal for the next generation of talent and for the buying public. Without these major artists most labels would crash. They are part of the problem, but could aslo be a large part of the solution in my opinion.
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h
VoivodFan
Member # 8
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posted June 27, 2003 07:31
Most people I know who play in bands never see any money from the record companies anyway. They all owe them. The only cash they do make is from merchandise, touring and radio play royalties etc. If they gave their music away for free on the internet they would probably be better off as they wouldn't have to pay some fat, tone-deaf twat, listening to mariah carey in his office, for the 'privilidge' of having the music distributed. Major record companies are just a bank, but with terrible interest rates. Destroy them all and music will be healthier and more productive. How would all these so called 'singers' be able to afford the pitch altering equipment that helps them stay in tune without the investment of a record company, or the expensive video that 14 year olds wank off too? Destroy the major record industry and all you're left with is talented musicians making music because they love it.
Of course, this is all fantasy and I'm just a hippie who's sick of seeing bands get ripped off by wankers who are now crying about how they're getting ripped off. Tough shit. Those fuckers deserve all they get.
Anyway. I'm just ranting. As in most things in life there are record companies that are doing it right, and bands who are enjoying it. Those labels aren't crying about mp3's. They are using them to promote thier acts. The only type of music to be suffering is processed pop. And who gives a fuck about that shit.
Just my un-educated thoughts.
By the way - the only full album I have downloaded was the new vod. And I still rushed out and bought it the day it came out.
Fuck I could rant about this for ages, and I may well be wrong about it all, but that's how it looks from where I'm drinking. Another pint of Guinness please barman.
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K
VoivodFan
Member # 6
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posted June 27, 2003 07:40
The solution is simple.1. Kill everyone who wears a Suit and Tie. (Unless they have a Voivod Shirt on underneath, lol!)
2. Keep P2P going strong. Plus MP3.com & others. Let FREEDOM ring!
3. Bands ALREADY have the ability to completely bypass the Record Companies
and the high cost of Mass Distribution.
Just use theyre own damn Websites to move product!
4. Make King Kula the financial and Marketing Advisor to Voivod!
That way they will make tons and tons of Money.  anyways. back to reality here. I do believe that Bands should start using theyre own Websites more.
The Technology is there...why not use it? For Instance... The Band HOLOCAUST (Are you reading this Ron?)
They're new CD's are available through theyre Website. Great Idea!
There are a bunch of they're older CD's that cant be found anywhere though.
The Stupid Suit & Tie twats at Sanctuary Records wont release them individualy either.
(Not that i'm aware of anyways.)
Why cant the Band just say "Fuck It" and offer all those through the Website? The same could apply to Voivod concerning the MCA Years.
Plus theyre whole Catalogue!
As well as other Merchandise too!
One Stop Shopping where the BANDS make all the Profit! Its time for the Artists to fight back against the Suit & Tie twats.
Take THEYRE Music back!
Let the Lawsuits fly! Just simpily ignore them! Simple as that!
You cant get blood from a Turnip as they say. 
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X-D
VoivodFan
Member # 3
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posted June 27, 2003 12:41
quote:
Originally posted by h:
Hey Kula - you ever listen to DRI's "Suit & Tie Guy"? 
Whoa, I happened to pull that very album out of the collection for the first time in years just this morning, to listen to on the way to work. Ahh, DRI! You guy's make some good points and I think H is dead-on about the "record labels as banks" theory. I do not use those public "peer to peer" methods of getting free mp3s because the quality and authenticity is usually somewhat questionable. Not to mention all kinds of security issues that come to mind. I do however, download and share plenty of music with friends and via private servers and cdr trades. Most of this is bootlegs and out of print items, but I often find that it is simply impossible to obtain many titles because of poor distrubution (another unfortunate side-effect of corprate control over music) and I don't have $30-$40 to throw away everytime I want to check out some obscure new European band. So more and more, I find that I need to rely on a network of friends to help me to be able to obtain music that I may or may not ever come accross in my searching. Although I make a lot of use of the mp3 format, I still consider mp3s (even 192kbps) to be of considerably lesser quality than original cds (or even exact cdr copies), and often will still keep an eye out for official copies of titles I have gotten via mp3. For the time being they relieve my sense of urgency and allow me to make decisions of whether or not I am interested in an artist, but that's mostly it. One final note... With only a few exceptions (such as Voivod, whom I have purchased every album off the shelf since RRROOOAAARRR), I buy practically no 'new' cds at all! Mainly because of inflated prices as well as the limited selections I find in most retail outlets of "new" music, I buy almost exclusivly all 'used' music which doesn't really help labels or artists either. I've heard in the last few years that the RIAA is considering going after these store owners for not paying royalties to labels on sales of used material. I'm curious as to how you people feel about this concept? An article from the San Diego Tribune HERE
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Tangento
VoivodFan
Member # 117
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posted June 28, 2003 03:22
quote:
Originally posted by X-D:
Whoa, I happened to pull that very album out of the collection for the first time in years just this morning, to listen to on the way to work. Ahh, DRI! (edited) ...the RIAA is considering going after these store owners for not paying royalties to labels on sales of used material. I'm curious as to how you people feel about this concept?
For my money, the best D.R.I. is 'Dealing With it'.
Awesome.
Hey X-D, thanks for the link and the interesting points you brought up.
I have been buying used and new CD's for as long as they have existed, and I am also a frequent P2P user. The thing about file-sharing is that it is an incredibly effective way to discover music to BUY, at least for me.
As we all know, the problem lies with the ones who abuse the concept by D/L-ing hundreds of albums with no intention ever to buy any of them.
My heart goes out to the artist, not the execs as has been well-established by others here already. I am actually in the process of writing my first 'real' article, and it deals with these issues in great detail.
Now I have even more fuel with this new 'Used CD royalties' quagmire.
(actually, I'm surprised it took the idiots this long to think of this!) So anyway, thanks again X-D, Kula etc.
Interesting stuff.
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K
VoivodFan
Member # 6
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posted June 29, 2003 11:06
I was at FYE store yesterday and picked up the new Marilyn Manson CD.
On "Sale" for $12.99.I was amazed to see that prices had gone up considerably for other stuff i wanted to get.
They now want $18.95 for most of the CD's there! Unfuckingbelievable!
I remember thinking that $14.95 was too much.
Then $16.95. Now....$18.95???? WTF???? If the Music Industry want to spur sales in this crappy economy, shouldnt they be LOWERING prices instead of this steady increase?
Its like they are punishing EVERYONE over theyre displeasure of P2P! Now...i know better than to go to FYE store at the Mall for CD's but...
they stock so much Heavy Metal in that huge place that i just cant stay away! lol!
I am always bugging the buyer there and making sure that the Voivod section is well stocked...which it was.
(Doing my 'Street Team' duty. haha!) I just cant afford to put out what will soon be $20.00 per CD.
I was gonna get some CD's by that Band...GARBAGE...but they were too high priced.
(Yes...i like Garbage. So sue me!) The RIAA are ruining things for everyone.
Employees who work for them should be dragged into the streets and beaten!
Theyre fat cow President should be Crucified!
Damn all this gets me mad! lol! P.S. I heard the new Metallica for the first time there.
It sucks way beyond belief!
Now i wont waste my time downloading the whole thing for free.
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posted June 25, 2003 15:50
posted June 26, 2003 10:30
posted June 29, 2003 11:23
