EMI Customer Relations Tells It Like It Is 1080
hype7 writes "The Register is running a story about the most outrageous email sent from a customer services rep at BMI in Germany to a customer who had difficulty playing a copy-protected CD in his CD player. One of the most stunning lines from the translation: "If you plan to continue protesting about future audio media releases with copy protection, forget it; copy protection is a reality, and within a matter of months more or less all audio media worldwide are copy protected. And this is a good thing for the music industry. In order to make this happen we will do anything within our power - whether you like it or not.""
Oh well. (Score:5, Insightful)
The attitude! (Score:5, Insightful)
If this customer service rep was not just a malcontent and really was telling the customer what was passed down from management, BMI is shooting itself in the foot.
Bullshit (Score:4, Insightful)
Music Industry, take note (Score:5, Insightful)
And we will respond in kind.. (Score:5, Insightful)
Besides, their first attempt was defeated by a permanent marker. What will the next one be defeated by? A stapler?
Oh well.. give the RIAA enough rope, and it will hang itself. It's already acting like it's having a nervous breakdown. And with the GOP running the Senate, Fritz Hollings (aka Senator Disney) has no chance in hell of getting his SCCCCCCCCCCA bill passed.
Maybe I should buy some stock in Sanford (manufacturers of Sharpie markers)...
Arrogant, because they can afford to be. (Score:5, Insightful)
Which isn't to say that a platform can't fail - vis. the Mini Disk. But there's a difference between a platform failing and trying to imagine that simple competitive pressue exists for musical content.
Reality (Score:3, Insightful)
Secondly, even if this letter were authentic, it could very well be the result of a disgruntled employee who had a really bad day and just didn't give a shit anymore. Unless someone can show me widespread responses along the same line, or a mandate that this is the official response, I'll take this as no more than one guy. While the truth is that they are actively pursuing copy protection, which is their right, I find the overly hostile and confrontational content of the letter incredibly dubious.
Put the shoe on the other foot (Score:2, Insightful)
You'd be pretty angry about it.
This is exactly how BMI feels. I know I'm not taking the popular stance by not denouncing "facists tactics" or whatnot. But the truth is that BMI needs to protect its property. I think we should give them credit for at least being upfront about it.
OH well (Score:5, Insightful)
2) None of it matters, because if one person buys a copy protected CD, does the above, and puts it on p2p, the pee-in-the-pool effect kicks in, and the copyprotection-free version will be around forever.
Re:oh well (Score:1, Insightful)
Typical... just like every previous generation, you now find the music of the current up-and-coming generation distasteful. Happens every time.
And, FYI, just because you feel the music isn't up to your "standards", it certainly doesn't make it so.
Re:Reality (Score:2, Insightful)
1) they want to copy-protect all CD's
2) they insist that their copy-protected media is still compliant with Phillip's CD standard
3) your complaints will be ignored and you will be labeled a pirate for your troubles
Where'd they get this stat? (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm always curious to find out how they get stats like this. Where do they get the 250 million blank CDRs and tapes number? Sales alone is rather inaccurate, as it fails to account for data and photo CDs, as well as what *could* be considered legitimate backup CDs.
But obviously, all CDRs that are purchased are for the sole purpose of piracy...
Look back to Lotus & 1-2-3 (Score:5, Insightful)
I think we can look forward to the same with the music industry.
As Mark Twain once said (something like), History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme.
Copy Protection== Death of Mass Culture (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Oh well. (Score:4, Insightful)
Whats going to happen (Score:5, Insightful)
2. People can't play these CD's and stop buying new CD's
3. The music business sees the drop in sale and assumes more piracy
4. They encrypt CD's differently
5. Goto 2
It's a vicious circle....
There's no way they can stop music piracy... (Score:2, Insightful)
250 Million Blank CDRs (Score:5, Insightful)
There are 250 Million blank CDRs and tapes bought and used this year for copying music in comparison to 213 Million prerecorded audio media.
I'd like to see where these numbers come from. Personally, (yea I know, I shouldn't put my personal anecdotes on top of the population.) I have bought nearly 2000 CDRs for myself and school.
For school, we put our "Publication/School Newspaper" on the CD and give it to students for a keepsake. For my private use, CDRs are a cheap easy server backup format. Toss in a CD. scribble a date and put it on a spindle. If/when I need to roll back my home network server. viola.There it is.
Have I ever used a CDR to copy a commercial Music CD? Yes. Once. I have a Vitamin C CD (It was a gift--honest) and it wouldn;t play in my CD Player. So I ripped it (methinks there was copy protection on it) and burned it to a CDR. Viola. Now I can listen to the CD that was rightfully mine to listen to.
When The music industy pays to upgrade my listening equipment so that I can listen to their music, then maybe I'll consider not complaining.
Re:Arrogant, because they can afford to be. (Score:1, Insightful)
Re:Put the shoe on the other foot (Score:5, Insightful)
The problem is that they're selling defective goods, and trying to tell people that it's not their problem that their product, that claims to conform to a standard, doesn't, and as such will not work with devices that are designed to use such an item.
Protecting their property would be using the copyright laws to haul someone over the coals for releasing a CD with copyright material on, when they own that copyright.
What they appear to be doing is making it damn hard for the average guy in the street to work out how to get these things to work. And if it's not immediately obvious, they'll give up and try to take it back as defective (which it is). When they get told "No, that's the way things are now!", I wonder how long it'll be before nobody buys the stuff they sell, as it doesn't work.
They, they'll have all this copyright material not being circulated on the net, and also, not in the shops. They'll keep everything to themselves, literally. No revenue coming in, no company.
When they fall, someone with a little more sense will take their place.
Someone in these companies is suffering from a serious case of market myopia.
Malk
No, the Register is NOT the National Enquirer... (Score:5, Insightful)
In my experience, in the past they have had more journalistic integrity and readily admitted when they were wrong about something than many other organizations. But the fact is that they communicate regularly with many insiders in the IT field, they have been doing it for a while, and a lot of people who know what they are talking about both read the Reg AND supply them with information. Please stop spreading FUD about the Reg.
Open Letter to BMI (Score:5, Insightful)
While you are busy copy protecting your stable of has-beens, boy bands, and warmed over focus group music, I will be investigating the wonderful world of non-label bands.
For every over-produced single that your 'A&R' people put out there for the clueless masses, there are two *albums* by talented, REAL musicians who believe in what they do.
Sure, they don't have the marketing power that your big company has, but while you are lumbering around trying to pin the tail on the donkey, you will find that the party is over and you missed it.
I will continue to seek good music that I can legally download, make good music that others can legally download, and push good music that everyone can legally download.
There is plenty out there. It might not be as easy to find as your latest Clear Channel release, but it's there. You are over. Your time is done. You won't see me at the wake.
I'll be listening to music.
Sincerely, teamhasnoi
upgrade? (Score:3, Insightful)
Now the music industry wants to change formats to encrypted digital disks. What are they offering us to switch? Extra content? Digital liner notes or cover art? DVD-esque interviews, band commentary? The disks aren't even a new color or shape for crying out loud. Hopefully people won't rush out and buy new players "just because".
Used CDs (Score:3, Insightful)
Also of note is that this is going to be a European experiment. So at least for the moment the US will be copy protection free. But it is probably worth boycotting BMG anyways, if their record sales completely erode, maybe they'll consider different policies.
I guess I'll also have to cancel my BMG music club account too.
Re:In other words... (Score:3, Insightful)
Now that I get THAT out of the way, I am against the copy-protection BS they are using because it makes it harder for me to put music in a form I want to listen to. I don't share and I have bought every CD I have made MP3's with. I still think the weak encryption that was included on DVD's is also wrong. I also agree that if they want to sell me a cd, make something I want to listen to. I don't want to listen to Dirrty from that slut Christina Agulera (she even looks Dirrty on her album cover. ICK!). Give me something that the artist came up with and not the record company.
Sheryl Crow is very good and her music is at least original. I can listen to lots of her stuff and almost every song on the album is pretty darn good. Sure she has done remakes (Guns and Rose's Sweet Child of Mine
Re:Reply to EMI (Score:2, Insightful)
- I know it's Saturday from all the popping sounds outside. Nothing sounds quite like home than the local gun club
Re:sure... (Score:4, Insightful)
All the while those of us who can will go to the indy lables to get our music if not directly to the bands (Mp3.com still hosts some indy bands - go check out Cruiserweight) and in my book, I'd rather go buy their music and have the artists recoup most of the profit than some large, boorish conglomerate.
What we need to snap these CD nazis back into reality is a world-wide boycott of these "CDs" and pray that Philips sues the snot out of anyone trying to put a "Compact Disc" lable on what doesn't comply to Redbook standards.
Speaking of which - anyone got a link to the Redbook spec?
Musical Value (Score:5, Insightful)
That doesn't mean it is devoid of musical value.
You can see people dancing and moving and getting emotionally attached to it. That is music, that is art.
The fact that it is candy coated, semi-rebellious crap doesn't make it any less musical then it was in the 80's, 70's, 60's, 50's
Music is the voice of the generation, not surprising many don't want to listen, they'd rather dismiss it as garbage. Myself, I'll just live in the past. (And I'm in my 20's)
Re:Music Industry, take note (Score:2, Insightful)
this will only encourage P2P (Score:3, Insightful)
Record companies need to figure out that they do not dictate demand, I guess they've become delusional due to their oligopic power, but sooner or later one company will figure it out and the rest will follow. The consumer wants digital music formats that trust the consumer. If the consumer does not have the ability to convert the music to different media and formats, they will not buy it.
--WE-- don't matter. (Score:5, Insightful)
I can dig your music. Most of the people who write about their fav bands like indie stuff, or local, regional bands. That's cool. I don't think too many Slashdotters have front row tix for Pink or Justin Timberlake. Those are the acts that sell the majority of the CDs. Try explaining to a 12 year old girl with $20.00 burning in her pocket why she shouldn't buy the Britney Spears CD all her friends have because it's 'crippled'. It plays in her walkman and that's all she cares about. The worst part is, if it doesn't play in her player, she'll buy a new one.
Articles like this don't surprise me. To the informed crowds, all 2% of us, they might as well rent out big billboards and post a big "F*ck you" for all to see. We're not their bread and butter in their short term vision. Keep slapping a belly-baring shirt on a 17 year old with golden vocal cords and you'll never run out of $$$.
So in protest, we download the specific music we want. Morals or not, most people have done it or still do. It just adds the fuel to the fire. They cite pointless statistics about dropping sales. To us it's because the music might suck. As long as they keep putting the words File-sharing and Kazaa in the press-releases, people will assume the two are related, and legit file sharing gets screwed.
They won't go out of business because I don't buy their CDs. Or you don't buy them.
Start getting the 11-14 year olds to stop needing their N'sync fix and then you're onto something. I hate to say it, but with as much knowledge and purpose as we may have, we're no match for teenieboppers with mommy and daddy's money.
Re:In other words... (Score:5, Insightful)
Actually, that's not true. They care a great deal. If they can demonstrate to the US congress (yes, US... no one bothers trying to convice Europe or Asia of these things, as they will generally follow US lead, which may be sad, but is true) that copy protection keeps getting defeated and therefore they are "losing" lots of sales, they will be able to get legislation passed that requires CD-RW manufacturers to build in copy-protection.
Notice that they don't give a flying crap about the largest source of illegal music in the world (mass CD copying). They care that joe average with his PC might be able to get some milage out of their old CDs or listen to music in the car that wasn't purchased specifically for car listening, instead of having to impulse-by the entire CD again. That's a threat, and regardless of how right or wrong it might be, they'll work until you can be shot for doing it.
It's our job to find ways to make our politicians understand that this is not acceptable and that a sizable fraction of their constituents want to be able to listen to the music they bought.
Re:We can boycott and protest all we like... (Score:3, Insightful)
Ahh yes, you are correct. However, with this new copy protection technology, the new "CDs" won't play in the old equipment. While you and I are more likely to be able to afford to run out and buy a new CD player, Cletus probably can't.
This will be their downfall.
Re:The scary part... (Score:5, Insightful)
For example, we would send around a proposal for how we thought we might do something in the future.
A German colleague would respond with a tersely worded message to the effect of "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard of. If you don't do it this way, it will lead to the end of the company and we'll all be unemployed."
After a while, and after actually meeting many of these people face to face, I discovered that's just their way of saying "Hmm, that's not a bad idea, but maybe you should consider this..."
After reading the letter from the CSR, I realized that this is probably the same situation. It sounds really harsh, but it's not intended to be that way.
There are huge cultural differences between America and Germany, and it's important to try and understand those differences before over reacting.
Re:oh well (Score:5, Insightful)
There are lots of independent musicians making good music. They're in local bars, local venues, playing college stages, distributing music online for $4 a CD. Or maybe you just wanted to hear some tired old Metallica again; maybe those geriatric millionaire whiners are what you equate with good music. Their voices long ago slipped into irrelevance for me (not coincidentally when they donned suits to protest their fans sharing the music). But maybe the sight of some 40-something, balding fat guys does something for you, I don't care.
I've heard a lot of music from Pavarotti to Poto Duodongo, Grieg to Green Day and just about everything in between and on the outskirts. Now I don't mean to sound harsh -- well, yes I do -- but it's this constant whining about how bad today's music is that really pisses me off. There are as many vibrant, vital new artists out there now as there was twenty years ago playing in all the same places they played back then. Just look. Look in your local Weekend section of your morning paper. Look online. Tune in your local college radio station. But by God's grace, don't bother with commercial radio.
Re:Oh well. (Score:5, Insightful)
My conclusion is that the RIAA *KNOWS* they are obsolete. Remember, the RIAA serves a DISTRIBUTION function. Sure, by controlling that function they were able to decide who made music and who didn't and set prices, etc. and build their empire. But at the end of the day, all they are are distributors to get music from the artist to the listener.
Internet serves the EXACT same function. But since both artists and listeners can access the Internet, there literally is no middle man. The function on which the RIAA empire was built on has been made completely obsolete. Well, maybe not completely--not everyone has Internet yet, but in developed countries it's a matter of years before 90%+ of the population can download and burn their own music--if not at home at a local Internet cafe, etc.
So at this point I think the RIAA knows this. I think they KNOW they are obsolete. They have two options: 1) Admit defeat now. 2) Use copy protection, lawyers, and politicians to maintain their empire for a few more years. After all, their empire is worth billions per year.
Yes, the RIAA is going to put itself out of business. But with all their nonsense they might be able to extend their functional lifetime by a few billion dollars. In the end, they're history anyway--they might as well eek out a few more dollars if they can.
I'm just waiting for ONE major artist (Madonna, Phil Collins, Elton John, etc.) to publically refuse to resign with the RIAA and to go to a pure Internet-based distribution system and playing concerts. Once one bails, the RIAA is going to fold like a house of cards. Don't know if we'll see a major artist bail in 2003, 2004, or 2005... but it will happen. It'll be fun to watch.
Need to be tagged. (Score:3, Insightful)
If there is an EF equivalent in Germany, maybe they would be willing to accept and publish specific donations. Specific not in the sense that they need to spend the money on so and so, but donations in the name of: F*** EMI or maybe something a little more political correct.
Re:Oh well. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:At odds with the other big fish? (Score:3, Insightful)
Technologically, it would not be hard to do; all that's necessary is for some hardware company to get sufficiently pissed off. Will this happen? Oh yes.
Re:Where'd they get this stat? (Score:5, Insightful)
Yeah, This assumes that nobody ever backed up any data, noone saved their work to CD, no digital photographers kept their pictures, no videographers saved threir work to CD, and that the single use for CDrs is to pirate music. The funny thing is, this is a completely garbage statement. All this statement means is that they have no clue what CDr's are used for, and would rather spout off than figure out just how many ACTUALLY are used for music.
I would really like to see someone do a study of just how many CDrs go to data and how many go to music (pirated vs fair-use categories). When someone has some quality data on this, then tell me about music pirates. Until then, quit flapping your lips and work on your study.
Far and away most of my CDs that I burn go to my own content. We have a digital camera, and at full quality, you can fill a CD with photos in a weekend. I regularily backup up my entire system to CDrs. Neither of these has anything to do with music.
Re:Music Industry, take note (Score:2, Insightful)
All my music gets ripped onto a Firewire HD with iTunes and then I send 1,000 tracks to my iPod to listen too. It never gets shared with anyone, sometimes it ends up in the truck in a CD-R so I can toss it on the dash or on the floor without ruining a real CD.
The CDs then sit in a 300 disk changer or in a 5.56 ammo box for the rare moments when I listen to them through my Paradigms in the living room.
If they screw with me, I'll simply stop buying CDs. I can live with the 8-900 I have. Not like new music is any good.
Well new stuff from the Man in Black is still good.
Yea, make the consumers stop buying your products, then explain that to the share-holders.
Re:--WE-- don't matter. (Score:2, Insightful)
Morals or not? I find this offensive and it is one of the biggest problems facing our society worldwide. By this logic, everybody who feels entitled has an excuse to do whatever they want. This logic taken to extremes gives us the Taliban.
From the music/software/media perspective, what you are not realizing or caring about is that people make their living by producing music, movies, or software and by stealing, yes stealing as in theft, you are taking money out of their pockets. Now, by no means am I suggesting that people support the large music companies that are forcing this copy protect crap on us. Rather, I would encourage everyone to support the smaller labels and artists that I have written about in other posts.
P.S. Don't steal music.
Fundamental Problem with CD Copy Protection (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:No, the Register is NOT the National Enquirer.. (Score:3, Insightful)
That is why I don't read the Register. I don't want to let some journalist form my opinions and I don't have the patience to sift through their articles separating fact from fiction. Just give me the plain, boring facts, instead of making every event look like the end of the world.
Re:I tried to post first (Score:5, Insightful)
I personally use most of my CD-R's for games/programs that I didn't purchase.
That and digital pictures, home movies, photo CD's, file backups.
maybe 1 in 40 CD-R's I use contains any music at all.
Well, now there will be competition (Score:2, Insightful)
It's more likely though that once a lot of labels using copy-protected CDs, the remaining holdouts will see their sales sky-rocket and take notice. They will start selling CDs with a huge phillips logo on the package and running marketing campaings showing "everyday people" with MP3 players and scratched CDs making a switch.
Also, watch out for other countries recording music specially for US and european markets and selling cheap, working CDs. Mickey Mouse will soon be cornered by Hello Kitty :-)
Re:Exactly. (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Oh well. (Score:5, Insightful)
If the product sucks, you're restricted from using it and your suppliers don't like you, there's going to be trouble. Quite honestly, that business strategy makes some of the dot-com nonsense look brilliant!
Re:Oh well. (Score:3, Insightful)
The problem with this is that the concert and radio businesses are monopolies. Any artist seen as anti-business will soon be a street artist.
Those who say the US needs campaign finance reform are wrong. We need big media/anti-monopoly reform.
Re:oh well (Score:5, Insightful)
I think that this point of view is propogated by the distillation of the labels' back catalog of music.
I'm 30, so my pop music consumption began in earnest in the early-to-mid mid-80's, when I got my first radio. I'm sure there was a lot of crap in the 50's, 60's, and 70's, but I never hear hear it anymore. What I hear on the radio is the popular stuff from those eras.
Today, what little I hear on the radio (and used to see on MTV), they pump out a lot of crap. Sure, there's good stuff, but it will bubble to the top over the next ten years and wind up in rotation on whatever "best hits of the 80's, 90's..." Clear Channel affiliate is out there at the time.
Do you think that in 20 years, people will get stoned and go soul searchin to N'Sync and Britney Spears albums, like people still do to Pink Floyd's The Wall? I highly doubt it. Will we see "Laser Backstreet Boys" at the local planetarium 30 years from now?
There's pop music, truly groundbreaking music, and then there's utter crap. Sometimes they overlap, and everyone's threshold is obviously different for each category.
I simply love the Beatles. I freely admit that their first albums were no better in content than current boy bands. I'd argue that they grew and contributed to musical history in their later albums. Bands just don't have that kind of shelf life anymore, so they never get time to grow anymore. Joplin, Marley, and Hendrix, also from that era, made some truly soul-shaking music. I don't get that from any current music.
Though I've consumed my fair share of pop music in the 80's and 90's, I can't think of any groups/performers I've followed that have had similar impact on people (as opposed to musical trends). Some of my favoites are Suzzane Vega, Enya, Kirst MacColl, Cheryl Crow, I don't know if any of them will stand the test of time. My wife introduced me to 80's rock these past five years or so (Cinderella, Bon Jovi, Great White), and while those feel more timeless and relavent today than those I loved in that era (Cindy Lauper, Huey Lewis, The Cars, Dire Straits), I don't know if those will last 20 more years either.
Another factor, IMO, is the seeming death of the theme album. I ask this question with all honesty: is there anything from the 90's and later that is equivalent to Sgt. Pepper, Abbey Road, The Wall, and Bat Out of Hell? I'm open to expand my contemporary music tastes here -- let the titles fly.
Having spewed all of that, I'll state that 2nd-hand music sources have been my primary source for a long time. It seems that every college town has a great used music store nearby (any Von's or JL Records fans from Purdue?). Several years ago, I discovered secondspin.com, which I have used almost exlusively since the first RIAA lawsuits began in the late 90's. I haven't bought I new album in quite a while, and these crippled CDs will only reinforce that behavior for me.
Who knows... maybe there's a scientific reason for the generational gap in musical tastes. Perhaps the hormone-charged angst most go through in our teens and early twenties cause us all to bond to whatever music we listen to at the time -- like a duckling that imprints on the first living thing it encounters. I like to think I'm really being objective when I say that the quality of music has been diminishing over time. Maybe it's the homogenization of Clear Channel and the like? If I could get music from the 20's thru 50's produced with today's recording technology (instead of scratchy mono tapes we have in the archives), I'd have a lot of it in my collection.
Comment removed (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Protest, boycott, lets do something..... (Score:3, Insightful)
It appears that "we" already are boycotting CD purchases. Sales are down 10% to 24% depending on how you measure (or who you believe). Any way you slice it, CD sales are significantly down by double digit percentages when in the past they have almost always increased in low single digit percentages. That's what I'd call a boycott.
Why the boycott?? Probably not copy prevention, since few discs have been released. More likely, it's either a combination of several factors:
But whatever the reason, it's pretty clear that a boycott of CD purchases is already underway, simply by the significant decrease is sales. Perhaps copy prevention will drive even more people to boycott, as it will only really work against #2 (nobody reading ./ comments is naive enough to believe copy prevention on CDs is going to prevent someone, somewhere, from making a "good enough" analog rip or circumvent it digitially and than post it to Kazaa). Then again, maybe #2 is the reason for the boycott, but my personal hunch is it's mostly #1 and #3.
Re:How to deal with this... (Score:3, Insightful)
File a small claims case for the value of the CD plus court costs. This can easily hit $100, depending on court fees. Bring the player (stereo, walkman, iMac, etc.) into court. Show the judge the logos. It should be fairly cut and dried.
The point here isn't the $100, the point is forcing some manager to waste a day in small claims court. It might only be ten minutes if you are first on the docket, but it could be 8 hours if you get to sit around. If they try to settle while you are waiting in the court house, make sure you make them sign a form saying "this CD was defective for the purpose it was sold". And if they bring in a lawyer, dummy up and speak to the judge.
Re:I tried to post first (Score:5, Insightful)
Oh and come off it. Please tell me what tapes they are referring to. Deos anybody use tape anymore except for their VCR, their digicam, or for their server's backup?
As for ripping MP3's. Yup, I do it! And I don't have to swap out a CD all the time and the shuffle feature of XMMS is great! Oh, and you record company guru's, I still have the original CDs I ripped the mp3's from, and I don't have some P2P app installed either. So bit me! The second I can't listen to music paid for the way I want is the second you lose my business forever! Plenty of Indie bands out there not copy protecting their home grown CDs.
Buy Direct From the Musician (Score:4, Insightful)
Then buy music from unsigned musicians and street artists!! There's a lot of good original stuff out there that you can find if you look for it. Any more most bands have a web page where you can sample their music, buy a cd, and find out about a show.
Here are some great unsigned bands that I've found: Breech [breech.net],OO-Soul [oosoul.com], and Powder [powdermusic.com]. Go to the sites, try out their music and if you like it buy the CDs direct from the band!
This music isn't free as in Napster, but it's close to being free as in freedom
Re:Whats going to happen (Score:5, Insightful)
Then again, maybe "the internet changes everything", but in the case of Macrovision, most of the VCR manufactures built their recorders to respect the macrovision signal.
Oh well (Score:3, Insightful)
More and more of the music I listen to is put out by artists who are not on major labels and I think if this is how the major labels are going to treat the buyers then that is only going to continue.
Yes, I do buy an aweful lot of CD-Rs compared to CDs (this year about 300 to one), but I've NEVER burned a CD-R of music I wasn't entitled to. That is, music I had written permission from the artist to make copies of (one of my hobbies recently has been collecting music for an online radio station that hasn't gotten off the ground yet... all of it with full permission from the artists and copyright owners to make MP3 copies for use by the station to by-pass RIAA efforts to tax the hell out of the little guy. In that capacity I've made live recordings of some indie bands with their permission and even been asked to send them copies)
On the other hand, most of the CD-Rs I burn are chock full of free software (open source or otherwise freely distributable) so I resent music industry efforts to make me pay the big labels for the right to buy blank CD-Rs, NONE of which will be used to copy thier "property".
Re:Music Industry, take note (Score:2, Insightful)
Optical media drives fail over time. When all of yours fail, and the only ones available are the ones that have copy-protection built-in, how will you install your OS (for instance) without increasing the population of copy-protection-compatible CDROM or DVDROM drives?
What's that? They will be cheap enough to buy without buying the music? Ah, but then, your CDROM/DVDROM drive will be capable of playing those copy-protected CDs. When one comes out that you REALLY want, and you see it in the store and you've got the cash to spare, how will you keep yourself from giving in "just this once" ?
I dunno, all this talk of "They're goin' DOWN MAN! I predict two to three years TOPS and RIAA/MPAA/Microsoft is DEAD!" seems silly to me. No, I'm not some corpobot, I hate them, too. However, they are very wealthy groups. Someone earlier mentioned Phil Collins, Madonna, and Elton John as people that would cause the music industry to (paraphrase) "collapse like a house of cards". Uhh, "HEADLINE: Phil Collins says Phuk You to RIAA; Populace says *YAWN*". Elton John... GAY (not that there's anything wrong with that, but this is Big Business we're talking about. I don't think it would matter too much to them if he left). And Madonna? That freak? You're trying to say that Ford will collapse because they're losing the Focus? B.Spears and friends are akin to the automotive industrys SUVs -- the "bread and butter" of the industry. Okay, if Spears/Shakira/Aguilera/BS Boys/N'Sync went off and did their thing on their own, that would be a kick in the nuts to Rosen. But, then they'd just have another American Idol or Making of the Band competition and replace them with "new, fresh faces". And all of the little kiddies would have new whores to idolize.
Anyway, I don't think it is going to be as easy as one event to cause them to crumble, if "we" don't before they do.
(And now I'll go off and do my penance for naming all of those pop stars off the top of my head.)
Re:Oh well. (Score:5, Insightful)
I think I would debate even this. The Monkees were about as manufactured as you can get back in the day and yet their music is still better than N'sync and their ilk. Why? Because at least back then the music Execs were in the business because they liked music. After the massive consolidations and managment changes involved therein the people running the show are now only concerned with making money. It doesn't matter to them if it's washing machines, chopped liver, or music that the company is selling so long as the bottom line is black.
Re:You will (Score:4, Insightful)
There IS a big difference in these two examples, however - DVDs have been using copy protection of some type since the beginning - with CDs this is a new problem, and the kind of problems people have playing crippled CDs is likely to far outnumber problems with incompatible DVD players, because the CD players are not aware of the methods being used to make them "copy-protected".
Re:A lone voice...? (Score:2, Insightful)
This is supply and demand, they don't want to be subject to it. The fact is, people are finding fewer CDs that are worth buying while the prices keep going up! That leads to people not being willing to pay that price anymore and seeking another way to get what they want, which is probably just a song or two. In the real world, this should lead to prices on the CDs coming down to a level where most people will pay for them. This happened with computer software not so long ago, do you not remember when WordPerfect was charging $600 for a word processor? Now I can buy WP for $30, and I did. Back then, I copied it.
The industry is the root of the problem. Music copiers pushed it along, but the music industry created this problem for themselves. People were making tapes and sharing music long before the internet, it just made it faster. The fact is, people have been asking to pay for music online, they didn't want to offer it to us, so we did it ourselves. They could have offered us what we wanted for a price we were willing to pay, they refused. Does that make stealing from them right? Not really, but it doesn't make it right for them to destroy fair use either.
Piracy involves killing and such, I don't think it's fair to call someone who burns a CD the same as a person that burns a group of people alive, do you?
Re:Oh well. (Score:4, Insightful)
Admittedly, I'm having a hard time myself coming up with a good example of an artist on whose sales any label would be currently dependent. All the ones I can think of are very last-year.
the middle man commeth. (Score:3, Insightful)
If I were lucky there would only be my ISP and the artist's ISP between me and my music, but it would still be a middle man. If there are only two choices of middle man, MSN/ATT or Time/AOL/Disney, I'd be just as screwed as neither is likely to provide "internet" service as we know it.
Re:No, the Register is NOT the National Enquirer.. (Score:3, Insightful)
In English (European?) style journalism, journalists themselves are allowed to have opinions and to express them themselves, rather than through the puppet characters that Americans use. So, yes, they are slanted. American news is slanted, too, but the slant is done with the puppets. That's all.
Re:You will (Score:4, Insightful)
But *it* isn't the only way. You think the next few nifty punk/techno bands are going to sit back and give all their revenues to some big name label? You've got another think coming. Kids are a lot more savvy than you think, and they're also the ones who buy most of the music...
Re:--WE-- do matter -- you just provided the clue. (Score:3, Insightful)
Answer: Those of us who 'don't matter' should buy crippled CDs in the store, return them because it didn't work. Have them assume it is damaged. Exchange for another one. Later, rinse, repeat. We should actually patronize these companies and buy their crippled CDs, if only to fill the return pile.
How to get me to buy CDs (Score:3, Insightful)
I'm the ideal music consumer. I love music, I earn good money (well, sort of), and I recognize the value of intellectual property (I produce it), so I don't steal it.
Problem is, I've run out of stuff to buy. There isn't a single listenable commercial radio station on the air. They all play the same mediocre stuff, over and over, plus a lot of really crass, insulting commercials.
The online, officially-sanctioned music scene isn't much better. There are crappy, commercial-encumbered interfaces that make available a small number of highly-compressed, proprietary-format, selected-for-the-idiot-masses crap, and there are collections of MP3s of varying quality and completeness in a bazillion poorly-fornmatted, not-enough-information-to-make-good-selections, lucky-if-you-even-encounter them places.
In short, I don't have the patience of God, so my access to new music is limited. Music availability has been pop-cultured into mediocrity.
If record companies want me as a customer, and I used to be a very good customer, they need to fix this. I want a means of previewing available music without ads, spyware or hoops to jump through, and I'm not going to give my social security number, mother's maden name or a tissue sample to get it. Make it proprietary and less-than-audiophile quality to protect your sales, but make it easy to get at, and give me more than mass-market crap.
I'd also suggest fixing the homogenization of radio, but I believe all ad-supported media is beyond saving.
Amy
Re:--WE-- don't matter. (Score:2, Insightful)
It'd be a nice time to give a lesson in doing something for a cause rather that just indulging your latest whim.
-Craig
So here's my plan for dealing with this... (Score:2, Insightful)
1. Go to record store (sorry, but I'm old and to me, its a record store).
2. Pick up a few CDs known to be protected (we've really got to get these things labelled).
3. Initiate a purchase transaction.
4. During said transaction, inquire if the CDs are protected.
5. If they say No, call 'em on it and abort transaction.
6. If they say Yes, tell 'em I wont buy protected CDs and abort transaction.
7. If they say I dunno, tell 'em I don't want to take the chance and abort transaction.
8. Try to retain the ability to look at myself in the mirror after being such a dick to my local music store owner... (well, those guys are pretty much screwed anyway in the long run)
-x
has music quality dropped? (Score:3, Insightful)
I would instead contend that people are spending more of their dollars on DVD movies and less on CDs. Why?
Your average DVD costs 15-20 dollars. So does the average premium CD. A movie is generally at least an hour and a half long, plus bonus materials. A CD is usually not much more than an hour long. And a movie is a much more engaging experience with video and surround sound. If consumers have limited dollars to spend on entertainment they will pick the better value.
The problem is that the music industry is operating from the premise that they are entitled to ever-increasing revenues on a mature technology that is being overtaken by something more exciting. The music industry needs to either spice up the product or get used to making less money.
Actually (Score:3, Insightful)
Antitrust-wise they seem to be in zero trouble, without making any material change in their business practices. So one PR strategy against Linux failed. There will be dozens of others. I still don't find it obvious that Microsoft's products will be eclipsed by open source in the long term.
I think the moral of that story is, do whatever you want to your customers; if you're a big enough monopolist, you will almost certainly get away with it.
Re:If you want to beat these bastards... (Score:2, Insightful)
CD sales fall, and the RIAA are going to claim that there copy protected CDs are being cracked, sharing is increasing, and introduce something worse.
Do you want the only music available to be tried to windoze XP?
remember we are talking about the RIAA here, and since when did they actually think before acting
Re:Verizon was proud to say it to me last night. (Score:2, Insightful)
I wonder if they'll have to coin a new term soon:
"Going Corporate" instead of "Going Postal?"
Perhaps /. could help in bring down RIAA? (Score:2, Insightful)
Dammy