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I am going to re-open this because of the very courteous request I received from the topic creator to do so.Let's try to keep things on track please.

"Exposure certainly helps the sales but if all that exposure is due to free downloads, why would someone pay for the albums when they can get it for free? Certainly the band would be well known but with no one buying albums the band would have to stop making music since they couldn't make ends meet."

darqdean wrote: Out of interest, how many artist permit 100% free download of their entire catalogue?   I was just wondering exactly how many Artists have voluntarily entered into the new era.

yeah, you know if musicians like give stuff away and get really famous, you know the mortgage company will say, "that's ok, you're famous, you don't need to pay"...... which'll be good cos we'll be SO busy answering the door to all butcher, baker, greengrocer etc who'll be delivering free food in honour of our fame that we wouldn't have time to pay them anyway!

What business school did you drop out of?

Sheeesh....... musicians (like the butcher, baker and candlestick maker) need and deserve to be paid for their product. (It's kind of how they fund the next product)

yargh wrote:   You'd not be getting paid by me in any case.  I've spent thousands on CDs over the years, but no artist has seen a penny of my money in at least 5 years.  I buy everything used.    In any event, artists simply need to get used to the fact that people are going to get their stuff, for free, pretty much whenever they want.  And this is a GOOD thing for all interested parties. It will lead to greater and greater sales and concert attendances.

Does anyone else see the contradiction here?

"I don't see how not paying artists is a good thing - if you don't pay them, they can't afford to go on tour."

Edited by yargh - May 17 2007 at 13:15

yargh wrote: "ok...... we are not being dragged kicking anywhere. We offer plenty of free downloads in a variety of places, to take yet more is disrespectful, rude and damaging.......and lets face it a tad on the greedy side. We ask fair payment for fair goods. It's not unreasonable."   You'd not be getting paid by me in any case.  I've spent thousands on CDs over the years, but no artist has seen a penny of my money in at least 5 years.  I buy everything used.    In any event, artists simply need to get used to the fact that people are going to get their stuff, for free, pretty much whenever they want.  And this is a GOOD thing for all interested parties. It will lead to greater and greater sales and concert attendances.

Edited by Tony R - May 17 2007 at 13:08

yargh wrote: I'd rather not make a distinction.  If artists have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the new era, so be it.  I heartily encourage everyone and anyone to download whatever they want -- legally or illegally -- and then purchase the album if you deem what you have heard to be purchase-worthy.

Out of interest, how many artist permit 100% free download of their entire catalogue?

yargh wrote: I'm sorry, but the RIAA and its draconian ways simply must be stopped.  If this means downloading and selling albums illegally, I'm all for it. Free downloads provide an artist with a much greater audience.  People that like the music will still buy it.