Since the birth of the computer, people have partaken in many activities based on the web. Some positive, some negative, and some down right illegal. The most common incident of illegal activity online is through what some would call modern day piracy. The more accepted term used is file sharing, and it is just that: sharing files over the web, typically illegally. File sharing has been a controversy who’s legality has been frivolously debated since Napster in 1999. (Oberholzer) File sharing has been exaggerated to be an instrument of theft, thus leading to the downfall of the music industry. However, thanks to file sharing, users have been exposed to music they would have otherwise never known existed. File sharing of intellectual copyrights
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(Enigmax) Piracy is believed to be the main downfall of the music industry by many, but Jens Roland explains in the article “How to Kill the Music Industry,” that there are plenty of other factors that have to do with the decline of music sales. Computer and video gaming is now competing with both music and the movie industry. Video games are now getting a big cut of music revenues. New forms of media are now accessible, like the mp3 files. Buying physical CDs is something from the past, and now people are buying a song or two from a CD, instead of the whole thing. Being able to download music instantly has eliminated a lot of the corporate music distributors as well because mp3 files are instant and there is nothing you have to physically ship. Also, music technologies have evolved to the point that many artists are going about things in a more do-it-yourself approach. Many big artists can now leave larger labels and start their own recording ventures for a fairly small price. There are many online radio stations now that offer free streaming audio. Whether you listen to this on your computer, or pick it up on your iPhone, you can listen to just about anything you want for free, and totally legally as well. Roland states, “The fact is that the music industry’s revenues have been artificially inflated for decades …show more content…
They call it “Voluntary Collective Licensing,” which is something along the lines of what Rhapsody offers. A subscription type program, that lets you download as much music you want, for a low monthly cost, possibly five to ten dollars. As long as they pay, listeners can keep doing what they’ve been doing, without the risks of lawsuits. By charging a few dollars a month to all the 60 million file sharing Americans, this country would generate over $3 billion annually. This money would be split up and paid to artists accordingly. The EFF states several advantages to this proposal. Most importantly, the artists and copyright holders get their share of the money. The more the internet grows, the more people will want to engage in this all you want method, the more money artists make. Also, this proposal would keep government involvement to a minimum. This will give music fans unlimited access to a virtually unlimited selection of music. Voluntary Collective Licensing also allows artists who are up and coming to get a cut for their music. Before now, if you weren’t signed with a major record label, you probably wouldn’t get paid for your music. Now anyone can upload their music, and if people are listening to it, they’ll get their share of the $3
(Enigmax) Piracy is believed to be the main downfall of the music industry by many, but Jens Roland explains in the article “How to Kill the Music Industry,” that there are plenty of other factors that have to do with the decline of music sales. Computer and video gaming is now competing with both music and the movie industry. Video games are now getting a big cut of music revenues. New forms of media are now accessible, like the mp3 files. Buying physical CDs is something from the past, and now people are buying a song or two from a CD, instead of the whole thing. Being able to download music instantly has eliminated a lot of the corporate music distributors as well because mp3 files are instant and there is nothing you have to physically ship. Also, music technologies have evolved to the point that many artists are going about things in a more do-it-yourself approach. Many big artists can now leave larger labels and start their own recording ventures for a fairly small price. There are many online radio stations now that offer free streaming audio. Whether you listen to this on your computer, or pick it up on your iPhone, you can listen to just about anything you want for free, and totally legally as well. Roland states, “The fact is that the music industry’s revenues have been artificially inflated for decades …show more content…
They call it “Voluntary Collective Licensing,” which is something along the lines of what Rhapsody offers. A subscription type program, that lets you download as much music you want, for a low monthly cost, possibly five to ten dollars. As long as they pay, listeners can keep doing what they’ve been doing, without the risks of lawsuits. By charging a few dollars a month to all the 60 million file sharing Americans, this country would generate over $3 billion annually. This money would be split up and paid to artists accordingly. The EFF states several advantages to this proposal. Most importantly, the artists and copyright holders get their share of the money. The more the internet grows, the more people will want to engage in this all you want method, the more money artists make. Also, this proposal would keep government involvement to a minimum. This will give music fans unlimited access to a virtually unlimited selection of music. Voluntary Collective Licensing also allows artists who are up and coming to get a cut for their music. Before now, if you weren’t signed with a major record label, you probably wouldn’t get paid for your music. Now anyone can upload their music, and if people are listening to it, they’ll get their share of the $3