Throwaway Download Culture

Mr ProgFreak wrote: ^ the best strategy would be for new bands to record and publish their music all by themselves, bypassing the record industry. You can do that for example via TuneCore.com. You can register your music there and they will distribute it to iTunes, Amazon MP3 etc.. Of course they're doing it for free, but still ... I think this is the way to go.

Yes, that's legal download, but can this could live with the illegal download? How many people will choose I Tune if they can have for free their favorites cd's by a peer-to-peer files?

The downloading technology is the future of music and we cannot get away without it. The problem is how the bands could benefit in royalty from the sales of all downloads purchases. How much control can they have on the internet downloading? We have on one side our internet provider who encourage the downloading and on the other side some artists and labels who try to stop the downloading. Maybe it is easier to force the internet provider to increase the cost of a month subscription than to go after all individuals who download music illegally. How much are you willing to pay for Internet? How much money does it takes for a artists to live on his music? I think we have to control illegal downloading, to save our culture. But it's going to be like any services or goods in our life, meaning it's going to cost more. Nothing is free for eternity...

progkidjoel wrote: Epignosis wrote: Good example.  I've heard more than one person call the song, "Just a Small Town Girl."   Also, about the thing you said about The Wall, the point was that someone wouldn't/didn't/won't give it the time it deserves to be appreciated, and as the title suggests, form part of the "throwaway download culture".

progkidjoel wrote: Epignosis wrote: Good example.  I've heard more than one person call the song, "Just a Small Town Girl."   Also, about the thing you said about The Wall, the point was that someone wouldn't/didn't/won't give it the time it deserves to be appreciated, and as the title suggests, form part of the "throwaway download culture".

I understand that, but again, I think my point is valid.  We have free streaming tracks here, including songs taken from concept albums that are probably better off appreciated as a whole, and yet, if we don't like the sample, we might not acquire the album.  Hell, most of us first heard a song or two from The Wall on the radio- that all but forgotten relic of our culture, which prompted some to buy the album and others to pass on it, I would imagine.

Now if a person downloads an album legally, listens to a few songs and nothing else, then oh well...the artist (and whoever) has the money anyway.

If a person illegally downloads an album, then they shouldn't be listening to the music in the first place. 

Good example.  I've heard more than one person call the song, "Just a Small Town Girl."  

I have younger relatives who only listen to a classic band when a song of said band is performed on American Idol or used as part of the soundtrack for a Disney movie.  Then they download the one song and pretend that they like the artist.

I'm not sure what to make of all that, really.

I mean, let's be fair here.  There's only so much time and yet so much music.  If a person hears a few tracks from The Wall and doesn't like it, why waste time listening to the whole thing (let alone buying)?  Perhaps the person is missing out, but perhaps not.

Just like I only read excerpts of the original post and skipped the rest. 

I've recently found quite a bit of information about digital distribution (as the suits like to call downloading).

Did you know, for example, that your internet provider has a record of everything you have ever downloaded?
And that they are asked - not legally obliged however - to report illegal downloads to the police?
However, they never do, because they would quickly lose all their clients. And the police aren't doing anything - I can only speak for Australia, but our police force is not equipped for the 21st century... they're living in the 80's.

It is a serious epidemic. Bands have always got screwed over one way or another - a.k.a record companies giving them crappy contracts - but you would have hoped that when 16-year-olds can play in front of crowds of thousands we could spend a little time giving other bands the money they deserve.

Speaking of 16-year-olds, this is why Disney is making such a big splash in the music industry - their audience, consisting of 8-14 year old girls, has no idea what downloading is, let alone are repeated downloaders. Think of that next time someone says d/ling doesn't affect how much an artist makes.

progkidjoel wrote: Mr ProgFreak wrote: ^ you can display the jpeg on a monitor (or in a digital picture frame) - then you can hold that in your hands. Its just not the same - I don't know how to explain...

hi,

i just want to share with you some of my feelings I posted on beardfish forum incidentally a couple of days ago. Here goes.

...on pirate downloading. My apologies to the band here. I went to all registration into this forum in order to say to the band that I am sorry to have downloaded Sleeping I and II in their entirety. After a month of listening i decided I really love your albums I bought them both from Ebay. Same applies to music by other artists, including your friends here Tangent, Pain of Salvation, Karmakanic, etc. I know this is lame excuse but I am living in a small country in Asia where only you can't find progressive rock CDs unless they are as big as Dream Theater. I can't buy MP3 from iTunes or Amazon, as they think we Asian will distribute the files once downloaded (as if Americans or Europeans don't do it). Buying a real album costs a fortune in shipping and handling (most of the time equal or more expensive than the CDs), for example, InsideOut shop charges EUR27.5 for shipping 2 CDs, or Tripple Crown charges 40US for the limited ed of Dear Hunter. So with my level of income I need to make sure I buy the CDs I really like. Again, guys, sorry. Unfortunately I will do it again.

and

Just to add, of those mentioned in my previous post, I proudly own Tangent's Not As Good As the Book, Karmakanic's Boss in the Factory, Tomas Bodin's IAM and PoS' BE.