MPFrees

 

So I have a fairly simple view on MP3s and the law. Music format has changed (for the better) and so should the industry. They are still stuck in circa 1970, when tapes came out. That was the end, because now you could copy any LP in your home and distribute at your own desire. Well illegal reproductions did happen, but it hardly dented the industry profits.

Then came CD's in ~1984. That was cool, because they had so many advantages over tapes. Also cool for them because they retailed for double the tape price, yet cost less to manufacturer from about day 15 (no moving parts on cd's – think about it). So they schnaaied us there with extra profit for sure. CD burners in ~1994 took mixed tapes to a new level, but they still raked in the cash. It's quite a luss do make them in any volume.

All this crap got them worried, and it was no different when MP3's kicked off about the sametime. Now I can get someone's entire music collection onto my portable harddrive/Ipod in about an hour. Take a medium sized 30Gb MP3 collection, that's about 650 full length albums. That's the most amazing way to share music, which is a good thing for sure.

The industry are too worried about their rights. Somewhere they forgot that people make music for much bigger reasons than money. Eventually they will wake up, we'll a wider range of artists and less peripheral guys making money off these artists. Demo's are getting cheaper and better as decent setups can be done in a garage. Recording companies? Well they'll change for sure. Who needs a whole promotional division when you have myspace, publicists when you have a band website? Basically the power recorded music will be more in the hands of the musicians themselves, and not the hanger's on who've been controlling it for the last 50 years (which is why they fight it). It's a better situation for sure.

I still buy albums, but mostly from local bands who deserve the cash. I'd rather copy the MP3's and just do a R100 EFT to the band account. If you somehow feel guilty about MP3's, then here's a way to get it free and legal.

loadtheshow dot coza

very clever concept, get advertising money to pay for free downloads, which then goes directly to the artists. They have a quota for the day, and anyone can plunder it until it's empty. You get told who pays for your song. Brilliant.

So that's my viewpoint, I have a rack of cd's I hardly ever use and a bunch of mostly illegal MP3's I do use often. Still think I'm a criminal, then think about this. Author writes a book that the public can buy. You buy it, read it and put it on the shelf. You're done with it really, but might lend it out to someone, who will also only read it once. That person gets the same from the book that you did, yet paid nothing. To all intents and purposes it's the same as copying a cd. So if MP3 sharing is illegal and punishable, please take book clubs ( and libraries) down at the same time.