P2P filesharing, the rights and wrongs

[noah]

as for downloading hurting the music market, i would say i have gotten into 90% of the bands i like thru mp3s - as a result of which i will buy the cd or see them live. i dont have the spare cash to 'risk it' on a band i dunno, so downloading is benefiting bands from me..

thats a good point, and i see it in a similar light, i try...then if i like i buy. my cd purchasing has certainly gone right up several fold since i could try out tracks first

unfortunately i dont think this is the case for many tho. please dont think im getting on a soap box, i'm not saying this attitude is better or worse, i just like having the artwork and something tangible and why play mp3's when you spend £750 on a stereo

i'd have to say in all honesty that in my opinion there is no real justification of p2p, it is stealing, it is naughty - but it is usefull esp for tv shows etc that are unavailable etc... but then we all speed occasionally and that's naughty too everyone has a different threshold for what's morally wrong eh

[Zak33]

I too like kittens and spoons and cake

[directhex]

I too like kittens and spoons and cake

can't beat em

and cake is certainly preferable to death

[Michael]

So...Michael from Blackpool, who's IP I have....its ok to have all that music without paying for it is it?

I never said it's ok, i'm just not scared to admit to doing it, as do hundreds of readers who don't reply. The "omghaxigottehIP!!11" threat was lame. My identity is no secret, I link to the website i run in my sig which probably has my address on it somewhere.

Just because I can download music doesn't mean i'm going to go buy it if I can't. I'd rather spend my money on things that are going to entertain me for longer than 5 minutes a pop.

[nichomach]

Buy better music?

[badass]

No ones mentioned that all of the major record labels were found guilty of price fixing in Europe a few years ago and had been doing it since CD's frist came out.
If P2P sharing is as bad as stealing, then overcharging through illegal business practices is aswell.
I personally dont use it too much anyway, but when I do I feel not one slight bit of Guilt from stealing off a thief. I know 2 wrongs do not make a right, but I simply dont care - they have stolen from me a lot of money effectively (I have more than a few CD's) so I feel absolutely no guilt whatsoever about stealing back from them.
Also I notice that CD's are still a lot more expensive in europe than America, as are DVD's and cinema tickets.
The directors of these various labels are incompetant businessmen anyway. They ingored the internet for far too long, and now they are paying the price. If they had made their music available for download (even with some kind of copyright protection) for reasnoble prices 5 years ago then P2P simply wouldn't have taken off anything like the scale it now is.
Remember downloading music is easier than walking to the store and buying it.
They have made their bed, now they can sleep in it.
As for the artists - artists make many, many times more money from concerts/gigs than royalties. In fact if they work it well they can get their music heard to a huge audience globally for so much less money and therefore gain more fans and fill those stadiums easier.

[starside]

tv shows.... a lot of very good stuff (that 70s show, house (excellent that is), lost (again, better than anything over here)) has at the moment no plans to be shown here.

I agree with 5lab. I download US tv programmes which are not broadcast in the UK and are not currently intended to be, and are unavailable to purchase legally. 'Lost' is a fantastic US series, I recomend it to anyone......especially with the gorgeous 'kate' in it.

Regarding non compliant CD's.....If they do not play on my PC, I will return it. One of my stereos does not play copy protected CDs either, maybe it is made of PC components? I think a few artists have had loss of sales due to incompatible CDs that don't conform to standards. The only one I have now is Grace of God by Hellacopters, I can't take that back cos I bought it on eBay.

For CDs, I generally trawl the 2nd hand shops. In both York and Liverpool you can pick up pretty much any 2nd hand CD for about £6, no scratches or anything.

Regarding Pirates, I had a total stranger approach me in the street in North London to ask me if I wanted to buy any DVD's for a fiver. I just said, 'why would I want to buy pirate DVDs form you when I can download em for free'. He was a bit stumped at that.

Pjc

PS - I do not actually download DVDs, I buy or rent.

[directhex]

Regarding non compliant CD's.....If they do not play on my PC, I will return it.

many stores will refuse returns on cds, since you obviously just pirated it. which is why i won't risk it.

One of my stereos does not play copy protected CDs either, maybe it is made of PC components?

a stereo is only designed to play compact disc digital audio. if you feed it something non-cdda, it's pretty random what happens

[0iD]

Am I old fashioned? But I like CD's, I like to buy them, flick thro the sleeve notes & occasionally admire the artwork. But it has to be said, as has been mentioned before that CD's that eiher wont play on my PC or alter settings without asking do annoy the hell outa me.

[5lab]

Also I notice that CD's are still a lot more expensive in europe than America, as are DVD's and cinema tickets.

actually, thats not really true - cinema over there is more than it is here (in brighton), and cds/dvds are cheaper, but percentage wise the price difference is about in-line with the differences in food/electrical goods etc prices, once you take tax into concideration (which isnt shown in the ticket price on most products over there).

it apparently used to be the case, but having been in the states under a month ago i would say its not really the case any more - its a bit cheaper but not a huge amount

[starside]

many stores will refuse returns on cds, since you obviously just pirated it. which is why i won't risk it.

Really? I guess thats similar to Game refusing to refund PC games. Surely this can't be right. What about consumer rights?

I seem to remember my mum returning a Micheal Jackson (I think that was the artist) CD without any problems.

OiD - I dont think that your'e old fashioned.

[badass]

Really? I guess thats similar to Game refusing to refund PC games. Surely this can't be right. What about consumer rights?

I seem to remember my mum returning a Micheal Jackson (I think that was the artist) CD without any problems.

OiD - I dont think that your'e old fashioned.

They can try to refuse them back, but if they do not work then the sale of goods act says they have to take it back

[mnet674]

I buy all my cds now and have no illegal music on my computer, though a few years ago I was an avid filesharer, having used napster when it was starting, but since my dad works for Macrovision I decided to stop, its not as if I have any CDs that don't work even though I have a collection of 100+ now.

Edit: And I might add if I do find anything wrong with CDs my dad would be more than interested in trying to fix it rather than keep releasing faulty protection.

[Tomahawk]

Buy better music?

Lol.. Have to say this made me laugh!..

..This thread has been interesting, with some real valid points, and great discussions going on.. ..Many of the 'TRUE' points are facts, no matter what way you look at it Filesharing copyrighted/protected files is illegal.. even though BILLIONS of people would/could argue it either way.. As the law currently stands then its illegal, whether you choose to disagree, is up to you obviously..

[Agent]

but since my dad works for Macrovision....

Commiserations

[0iD]

Totally agree Tom.

If it's illegal you're breaking the law.
You break the law & get caught, tough, dont whinge.
If you break the law & dont get caught, all well & good, but the longer you do it, the greater the odds of getting caught.