Singing Loudly

The method of attack seems a little wrongheaded. Suing the music file sharers is only going to go so far. The music industry, more than any other industry I can think of, has maligned itself from the consumer in a very dangerous way.

In 1998, I had an FTP set up on my computer that served files to the few people downloading MP3s at that point. I had to be listed at different sites like audiogalaxy (before it became it's own file sharer) and 2look4.com. When audiogalaxy released software that managed your downloading, I quickly joined ranks. It wasn't long before I went over to Napster because of it's ease. However, I've never used KaZaa or anything besides Itunes in recent years.

It has been a mixture of things that have turned me away from illegal downloading. First, I do believe it's wrong to take what you don't own the rights to. I've heard all the justifications for it and think that it's nothing more than people trying to rationalize their conduct. Second, I care about quality and don't like having to search for hours to find a suitable song. Third, spyware. Fourth, I think that overall, it is more work than it is worth for me. I don't like many new albums that are coming out, and the ones that I do like I'll buy.

It seems odd to me that the music industry hasn't followed what the movie industry has done --- priced releases low. When DVDs come out (same with VHS when they were the main video format) they are reasonably priced. For most people, it isn't worth the time it would take to illegally copy the movie when they could just buy their own copy for $15. It seems to me that if a music album was priced from $8.99 to $11.99, it would get to the point where finding albums online just is not worth the hassle.

The music industry should focus its efforts more on figuring out new business models and less on the RIAA.