TechDirt's Masnick Responds To Warner's Jim Griffin On Choruss 81
newtley writes "TechDirt's Mike Masnick writes that the Warner Music Choruss licensing scheme amounts to a Bait-And-Switch operation. Not so, says Jim Griffin, the man charged to put it together. Masnick's story is 'factually incorrect in every respect,' he states. But Griffin 'refused to name a single factual mistake,' Masnick says, noting, 'He fails to address the key problems that we outlined: 1. Why is this program even needed when plenty of musicians are coming up with business models that work today and don't need a new mandatory license (er... 'covenant not to sue') plan? 2. Why do we need a new bureaucracy and won't that divert funds? 3. Will the industry continue to try to shut down file sharing sites? 4. Will the industry continue to push a 3 strikes plan?'"
Another blind alley from the RIAA (Score:1, Interesting)
Like a middle-aged person faced with the task of getting in shape, the right approach to combating rampant piracy is obvious, which is not to say that it's easy: they need to get consumers to want to do the right thing (that is behavior that is a win-win-win situation for artists, consumers, and business). They need to provide a compelling value proposition; only then can they harness peer pressure, which is absolutely necessary since people aged 26 and under are very susceptible to "social proof" (note: this is not a slag since it once described me).
Steve Jobs and Apple showed how it can work.
The record companies should experiment with sponsoring free, legal download sites in good faith. These sites would feature:
1) works of expired copyright
2) works from amateurs, fledgling professionals, and "past market prime" professionals
3) promotional works from professional artists, including items such as concert tapes
4) promotional works from the record industry, which would compensate the artists for giving away certain material
5) works from professionals who believe in sharing everything
6) works from specialized pros (like many classical musicians) who couldn't make money from selling records anyway
This will only work if the site really offers a cornucopia of good stuff, enough to keep people legitimately occupied for years. Then some people would really get into bands and genres, and would want to investigate what else they had to offer. Here's where the social pressure needs to kick in, so they would tend to buy rather than pirate.
The carrot works better than the stick. Try it guys... it just might work.
Re:Who Says What? (Score:1, Interesting)
I'm not paying so you can smuggle cola, I drink tea and brew my own beer.
Enough with the crappy analogy,
I shouldn't have to pay the failed cd sales industry because it's "convenient" for them to charge everyone.
The music I have I paid for, why should I have to pay again?