is it illegal?
Out of context: Reply #10
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- CAJTBr0
i don't think it is killing the music industry. i think they're making more cash now than ever. but they think that it will kill them off if they don't do something about it.
since mp3's been around i've been able to 'try' tons more stuff. i can download an mp3. if i don't like it i delete it, if i really like it i'll look for some more, if some of that is good i'll buy the band's stuff. i probably buy double what i used to, because before it was impossible to find stuff that i liked without taking the risk of just buying cds without hearing the music first.
i think the reason they're so hard on it is not because of lost biz (album sales have acutally increased since mp3, though admittedly singles have suffered), it's because of distribution. if mp3 took off properly and people quit buying cds, then what's to stop artist X from distributing themself? distribution becoming decentralized would kill these peoples businesses. all these lawsuits are just about retaining control.
you could call it stealing. but if i'm buying the stuff that i like, and deleting the stuff i don't, it's little more than 'pull radio' rather than commercial push radio.
besides, the music biz has stolen enough over the years.
there's a good article by courtney love (of all people) from salon a couple of years ago about the systematic theft of artist's rights by big music:
http://dir.salon.com/tech/featur…
as for this whole deal, i think it's stupid and violates the rights of individuals on the supposition of guilt. they'll look at everyone who's downloading mp3s to find those who are downloading ones that they own the rights to. meanwhile anyone who's legally downloading mp3s loses their right to go about their own business without being spied on.
however. it's probable that all your data is looked at by the govt anyway, so the erosion of privacy is just a tiny step further, allowing you to now be prosecuted for illegal activities that the govt can't tell you they know you're involved with.