OT: The recording industry strikes again.

[october]

Does the RIAA even realize the insanely horrible PR this is giving them?

 

Apparently not....and Metallica will remain forvever douchebags in my mind for calling fans who downloaded songs thieves. Talk about asssholes who have lost touch with reality.

 

I don't understand. Why aren't they thieves?

 

They are, in the strictest technical sense, but who cares? The fact that the band badmouthed their fans who are responsible for every dollar they have ever earned, over the loss of revenue insignificant to their vast overall wealth, is infantile and tasteless. They are all gazillionaires, and they whine about losing a couple of bucks when some 18 year old fan who makes 14k a year at Taco Bell downloads one of their songs for free? Talk about a move.

[Beau]

Does the RIAA even realize the insanely horrible PR this is giving them?

 

Apparently not....and Metallica will remain forvever douchebags in my mind for calling fans who downloaded songs thieves. Talk about asssholes who have lost touch with reality.

 

I don't understand. Why aren't they thieves?

 

They are, in the strictest technical sense, but who cares? The fact that the band badmouthed their fans who are responsible for every dollar they have ever earned, over the loss of revenue insignificant to their vast overall wealth, is infantile and tasteless. They are all gazillionaires, and they whine about losing a couple of bucks when some 18 year old fan who makes 14k a year at Taco Bell downloads one of their songs for free? Talk about a move.

 

Yup. They would have garnered much better publicity if they'd said "People are illegally downloading our music? Awesome!" In the long run they'd probably have earned a lot more by doing that, instead of having long-time fans like myself dropping them like a bad habit.

 

Cliff would be ashamed of them.

[october]

Yup. They would have garnered much better publicity if they'd said "People are illegally downloading our music? Awesome!" In the long run they'd probably have earned a lot more by doing that, instead of having long-time fans like myself dropping them like a bad habit.

 

It worked for The Grateful Dead. Concert trading did nothing but boost attendance at their shows....and the fans loved them for it.

[topofthetotem]

The record industry has to evolve plain and simple. Same goes for Hastings/HMV or any other company selling or renting books/music/movies.

 

Remember at one time the fur industry was insanely profitable but because of changes to society and how it views the treatment of animals it is a ghost of what it wants was.

[jools&jim]

File sharing and digital distribution aren't the only problems facing the music business these days. One of the larger and more persistent issues is that, generally speaking, the product itself sucks major hass, and has for a long time. The recording industry needs to spend less time worrying about lawsuits and ever-shifting technological strata, and more time worrying about the music itself...

[topofthetotem]

I agree its a pretty thin herd of "talent" that top the charts nowadays.

 

BTW do they still have "charts"?

[jools&jim]

I agree its a pretty thin herd of "talent" that top the charts nowadays.

 

BTW do they still have "charts"?

 

http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/chart_display.jsp?g=Singles&f=The+Billboard+Hot+100

[balloon_knot-migration]

Yup. They would have garnered much better publicity if they'd said "People are illegally downloading our music? Awesome!" In the long run they'd probably have earned a lot more by doing that, instead of having long-time fans like myself dropping them like a bad habit.

 

It worked for The Grateful Dead. Concert trading did nothing but boost attendance at their shows....and the fans loved them for it.

 

I would've thought you'd use MST3K as an example there, Mitchell They used to encourage their fans with a message at the end of the episode: "Keep Circulating The Tapes"! And fans love them for it. (But I realize we're talking about music, not tv)

[october]

Yup. They would have garnered much better publicity if they'd said "People are illegally downloading our music? Awesome!" In the long run they'd probably have earned a lot more by doing that, instead of having long-time fans like myself dropping them like a bad habit.

 

It worked for The Grateful Dead. Concert trading did nothing but boost attendance at their shows....and the fans loved them for it.

 

I would've thought you'd use MST3K as an example there, Mitchell They used to encourage their fans with a message at the end of the episode: "Keep Circulating The Tapes"! And fans love them for it. (But I realize we're talking about music, not tv)

 

I actually didn't know that, though I have heard of the MST3K episode sharing project or whatever it is called. I figured that they were doing it illegally, like people do with so many other shows. Nice to know that MST3K encouraged it. It makes the show a little cooler....though it doesn't really need any help in that department.

[mica]

Yup. They would have garnered much better publicity if they'd said "People are illegally downloading our music? Awesome!" In the long run they'd probably have earned a lot more by doing that, instead of having long-time fans like myself dropping them like a bad habit.

 

It worked for The Grateful Dead. Concert trading did nothing but boost attendance at their shows....and the fans loved them for it.

 

I would've thought you'd use MST3K as an example there, Mitchell They used to encourage their fans with a message at the end of the episode: "Keep Circulating The Tapes"! And fans love them for it. (But I realize we're talking about music, not tv)

Speaking of which... I could sure use a good copy of the Teenageer from Space (or whatever it was)

[shortstack comics]

I agree with Junkenstein.

 

"Harmless file sharing" though Hellblazer? Do you really believe it's harmless?? I'd urge you to read some of the more modern economic books out, that would disagree with you. Hastings is a national "media" store, selling music/books/movies. I'd bet that within 5 yrs they will no longer exist, a large part due to people not renting dvds or buying their music (and with only 10% of our population even reading books anymore, well... go figure). There are 5x Hastings that employee 70-80 people each in our city alone, so when I know 400-500 people will be out of work, I do not see it as "harmless".

 

Sure, sure I'm not blaming 100% on this of course, but I use that as more of an example to the crumbling of our retail sector in today's market. I'm not above downloading items either, not implying that. Just stating that "harmless" is about the last word I'd use to describe it.

 

Your example doesn't work. Hastings is going out of business because of digital distribution, not because of piracy theft. In fact, most studies done show that getting free copies of individiual songs leads to increased album sales.

[joe_collector]

I agree its a pretty thin herd of "talent" that top the charts nowadays.

 

Less choice, 20 different versions of the same song, way too much XXX featuring YYY idiocy, and worst of all, very few of these "superstars" can actually sing, and it's all done through sound equipment and then lip-synced.

 

Over the years, music has become almost inconsequential in the pop culture lexicon, and I can remember one major singing star (McCartney?) stating it best:

 

"I'm glad I was performing at a time when music really *meant* something to people."

[BlowUpTheMoon]

 

Link.

[jools&jim]

 

That story from the Onion would be even funnier if radio still, y'know...mattered...even a little bit...

[MR.COMICBOOK]

I consider most of them pied pipers. Influencing generation after generation as they laugh all the way to the bank. I really haven`t cared about the music industry in a decade. I couldn`t even tell you the top ten or who is hot. just a bunch of millionaires trying to make more millions.

More power to them but thier importance is greatly exaggerated.

they don`t put money on my table.

[topofthetotem]

Word up!

[moonlite]

A friend of mine was called to his daughters private college by the dean and told his daughter had illegally gotten some 160 songs thru file sharing and she was identified by the recording industry because she did it thru the school network. They told him he could write a check right there for 3500 or get sued for hundreds of thousands. He wrote the check. I warned my kids with the story.

 

If you hadn't heard that comic publishers (like marvel) are pushing digital format and downloading, then you may have been in a cave somewhere. Not to mention the bit torrent sharing of scanned comics.

 

 

[jools&jim]

just a bunch of millionaires trying to make more millions.

 

Elvis, The Beatles, Stones, Dylan, Phil Spector, Led Zeppelin, the Who, Springsteen, et al., were all millionaire recording arists, too. And they (or their various estates) continue to make BIG $$ from songwriting royalties and licensing agreements as well.

 

Being a rich musician doesn't necessarily mean that your music is worthless or un-listenable; being talentless in a directionless, creatively bankrupt and retrograde industry that values and promotes style over substance is mostly responsible for that.

[the blob]

there really isn't much excuse for this sort of file sharing when you can download these songs so cheaply and there are so many gimmicks and coupons where you can get tons of free and legal downloads (I kept on "winning" itunes or mp3 downloads every time i drank a diet dr. pepper...I don't have that stuff, so i tossed them out)

 

of course, most of the music i listen to is 25-45 years old, with few exceptions, so most of it I can find in the discount box half price or way less at music for less, then again, i'm a caveman who listens to DVDs!

[User 01001010]

there really isn't much excuse for this sort of file sharing when you can download these songs so cheaply and there are so many gimmicks and coupons where you can get tons of free and legal downloads (I kept on "winning" itunes or mp3 downloads every time i drank a diet dr. pepper...I don't have that stuff, so i tossed them out)

 

of course, most of the music i listen to is 25-45 years old, with few exceptions, so most of it I can find in the discount box half price or way less at music for less, then again, i'm a caveman who listens to DVDs!

 

you are old. i kid of course unless you are old. but the older the music the better (esp the blues)

 

but can anyone tell me what that whole shine on you crazy diamond means? my google search doesn't go back that far.

 

j