Good News For P2P

OK maybe a lot of people are a bit bored by the p2p stuff going on at the moment. But I saw some news yesterday that warmed the cockles of my heart. It seems that justice is alive and well in the G.O.USA, and common sense has prevailed. I've included the basic news item below, rather than try and abbreviate it. I feel very strongly that the RIAA has a very over inflated opinion of it's own self importance. People dont really much care for very greedy or selfish types at the best of times, but when it is the hugely wealthy music industry of America pleading poverty and that things just aint fair for poor old them that we all recoil in disgust.

When the last Eminem album sold more than 1 million copies on its first day of release in the States, the crying over 'lost revenue' from p2p is a bit rich to say the least. No one believes for a minute that the dire sales figures of the many less successful artists on the majors rosters has much to do with p2p. Eminem is probably one of the most popular artists to download, and yet he still achieves breathtaking levels of success, mainly due to his being VERY GOOD AT WHAT HE DOES. The fact that all the mediocre mainstream artists aren't selling their average records is down to the fact that no one wants them. I would imagine that cursory research into download statistics would confirm this theory. I use p2p to find out about minority music that goes largely un-noticed by the UK market, like post rock and electronica. These artists sell very few records comparatively, and I am doing them a favour by listening to their unpublicised releases, as I buy the majority of what I hear. It is the only way to get an idea of what these bands sound like, as radio has now been so emasculated as to have no playlist power left. I would argue that, contrary to popular myth, p2p actually increases sales figures. But perhaps not for the major labels with their bland release schedules, and greedy eye on maximising perceived profit margins.


Court Throws Out Net Music Legal Tactics
Fri Dec 19, 4:30 PM ET Add Technology - Reuters to My Yahoo!

By Andy Sullivan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a surprise setback for the recording industry, a U.S. appeals court ruled on Friday that record labels must abandon their favorite method to track down those who illegally copy music online.

Court Ruling Deals Blow To Recording Industry

Recording companies must file a formal lawsuit if they want Internet providers to turn over the names of customers who may be copying music illegally, the court said, adding the industry's legal basis for inundating Internet providers with thousands of subpoenas "borders upon the silly."

The decision complicates the beleaguered industry's efforts to stamp out online song copying over "peer to peer" networks such as Kazaa, a practice the industry believes has contributed to plummeting CD sales.

Earlier on Friday the Dutch supreme court ruled Kazaa can not be held liable for the activity of its users, underlining the industry's inability to shut down the online networks over which millions of songs are copied daily.

The Recording Industry Association of America (news - web sites) began filing lawsuits against individual users this fall, and so far has reached at least 220 out-of-court settlements, usually for $5,000 or less. more...

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