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Originally Posted by Number 3
Yes, there are rare cases when a musician will put something out there for free. But the radio isn't one of those. That music was paid for. I'm not sure how much but I recall an article on the person that did "Grandma got run over by a reindeer was paid something like $60,000 in residuals every year. But that payment doesn't clear you and I the right to own our own copy.
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I understand that radio isn't free, artists get royalties every time their song gets played. But I'm not the one who is paying for it. The station gets its money from advertisements, but I can't think of a single instance where some product or business was advertised on the radio & I made a purchase because of it. Not once. Suffice to say, I'd say its pretty reasonable to say I don't really pay for the radio I listen to, that radio is 'free to me'. Same goes for YouTube & the various internet radio stations I've tried.
As for artists not providing music for free, the majority of band sites that I've been to have some form of audio and/or video player for you to access their music on their site, for free. No pop-up ads, no subscriptions, you don't have to send in a proof of purchase. Just go to their site & listen.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Number 3
Think of it this way. Music is Intellectual Property (IP). GM has had cars ripped of in design and style in China. That IP is not protected there. Your argument would be similar to "well GM put it out there so now it's ok for any manufacturer to make their own Camaro". That would be stealing in the U.S.
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I'm not DJing on the side or lipsycing or selling copies of the music that I've downloaded or profiting in any way (like the Chinese do). I'm listening to it, and enjoying it. I don't even share my downloads (or especially the CDs that I rip), I'm just a leach.
The ones that are abusing IP are the quasi-cover bands that take a popular song, tweak a chord or two and mess around with a hand full of notes, maybe adjust the temp a tad ... anything to 'change' the song without really changing it. Then they sell it to be used in advertising or sound tracks (often for TV) or even claim it as their own in a live show or on their album. One example that I saw on TV tonight was for a new Conair electric razor or trimmer, the background music sounded sorta like the baseline from Eminem's
Lose Yourself (not sure where Em got it from, but thats not the point here). They took someone elses original art (music) and changed it
just enough to be called different and then collect the cash. As I said in my previous post, I'd argue that music artists have made
more money off me personally because I've been downloading music than if I hadn't. At worst its more or less a wash. Maybe I'm not typical, I don't know. I can only speak for myself.