RIAA Files 532 Music-Sharing Lawsuits

[candygirl]

I recently bought a burnt copy of Alicia Keys for $5 from "Hustle Man". I was telling one of my friends about the cd and I just so happen to mention who I bought it from. Well, he must of had a fit. He went off on a rampage about people not going to the store to buy their music, instead they buy a burnt copy like I did or burn one themselves.

I understand that burning cd's or getting music off of napsters takes away from the profits of our favorite artist but I really don't care. I was wondering how you all obtained your cd collections. Do you typically purchase your cd's from a retail store our do you burn your own copies? How do you feel about the effects that it might have on the artists?

[This message has been edited by candygirl (edited July 15, 2001).]

[Alias_01]

As an aspiring artist I understand the plight of people illegaly obtaining your product and taking away from your profits. But let me just say this..recently my ENTIRE CD collection was stolen from my car...needless to say ONE CD costs at a an average 15 bucks. ...so I will be burn hella CDs, but the classics I will buy over just because they are worth it. But normally I dont buy burnt CDs unless they are mixes.

Peace and Love

[straightBOS]

Well, I have a burner myself so I've been burning CDs for sometime. I also all up on the new-Napsters, and I buy "mix" CDs all the time.

To me, the artist is getting burned by the record company anyways so its really not like if everyone bought the CD all of a sudden their cut would jump tenfold.

I think the artists are being used as puppets in the whole napster controversy because its TOURING that actually puts money in the pockets of the artist. The record company gets all the money from the album sales.

With this new technology it becomes harder for the companies to sell us a wack artist or a wack CD. Before, they could carbon-copy any act and people would buy the CD, only to find out that there are only 3 good songs on the album. With this, you can decide whether or not an artist is worth supporting. I feel that this issue is being left out of the debate. The consumer that is tired of being duped into buying subpar releases has finally found a way "to stick it to the man."

That being said, I always support the artists that are really worth my money.

Lastly, lets not forget that NSync crushes records everytime they release an album, so its obvious that an artist can still stay afloat in the age of file-sharing.

[ClassyLady]

I can relate totally to this topic. I am a frequent buyer of bootleg movies and CDs. I do not have much money and this is more economical for me.

Needless to say, I have to hear my family and friend's mouths about this all of the time. But, I also have another reason for buying bootleg. The man that I buy them from used to sell drugs before he started selling movies and tapes. I figure, every tape that I buy from him keeps him from selling crack to a pregnant woman and harming a child's life before it is even born.

My family thinks that this reasoning is illogical. I'd rather have him selling tapes and movies than drugs any day. It's the lesser of two evils.

And, a lot of his movies are good quality. The camera is steady and there's nobody talking or moving in front of the screen.

[MeezDiscreet]

i "burn" mix cd's. i like to compile some of my favorite rap, old school, new school, slow jams, and what not, so that i have a cd of one certain mood, groove and vibe.

however, i do purchase cd's. i believe in supporting the artist that i am a fan of. that is their livlihood. i would hate to be on my job, working my a$$ off, let someone else deliver my work to the boss, and i not reap. i understand the artist's frustrations. I'D WANT MY MONEY TOO!!

[12dn94dst]

To answer the question, my collection is a misture. Most of the songs I have downloaded are harder to find but I have not and will not download & burn an entire artisit's CD. I prefer to buy them from the store.

This topic was brought up on an e-mail list. I hear what you're saying that the artists are not exactly poor, but a Soror (who happens to work fro a record label) brought up a view that I hadn't thought about. Yes, we all know that the artists are going to be paid regardless, but what about the regular folks (like her) that work for the record company? Their salary is paid by record sales. If the label doesn't make money, salaries & jobs get cut to make up for the difference.

[Delta_Dyme_2K1]

My philosophy on the whole CD thing...why should I pay $16 to somebody who's already a millionaire...nuff said!!

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delta_dyme
oooooooo-ooooooooop

[blueberi1920]

i don't like the $16 thing either but the truth is that a new artist like alicia keys is not a millionaire yet and burning her cd as opposed to buying it might hurt her so I might buy her cd.

[candygirl]

Originally posted by blueberi1920:
i don't like the $16 thing either but the truth is that a new artist like alicia keys is not a millionaire yet and burning her cd as opposed to buying it might hurt her so I might buy her cd.

I see what you mean. My intention were to buy her cd but Target didn't have it when I went and "Hustle Man" did. Oh well what's done is done. I'm pretty sure she'll do well for herself. She's extremely talented.

[straightBOS]

Did y'all miss the part where I mentioned touring?

The artists don't make beans off an album. The real money they make is from touring. So if you go to the concert, you are putting more money in the artist's pocket than buying an over-priced, over-hyped CD ever will.

[luvsong1913]

Hmmmm...I wouldn't burn an artist's whole CD, but I would burn some songs to make a mixed CD. If I like the artist enough to buy his/her CD, I'll support him/her by buying it from the store. Yeah, most of these artists are millionaires, but they've probably worked hard to get to that point, so I'm not going to be cheap and cheat them out of what they've worked hard to get. I would, however, burn the h#@! out of some software CDs (unless of course the prices came down out of the 100s of dollars range).

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S.H.A.D.E.
10-Lambda-SP00
Memphis Alumnae Chapter
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Lady of DSTinction

"Both tears and sweat are salty, but they render a different result. Tears will get you sympathy; sweat will get you change."

[prettydeltagirl]

I burn each and every cd that comes out. The whole cd and compilations. Why on earth would I pay for it when I can get free.If someone can make it make sense to me why then crap I will go buy them. Especially since they sound the same in my cd player as one that I would have paid for. Cds are around 20 bucks, that 10 bucks shy from a hair do, or a full tank of gas. I am addicted to burning them as long as I can burn them, I will never buy one. As soon as I figure out how to burn dvd movies I will be on that kick to.......and i'm out!

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#4 Whispers
Nu Eta Citywide Collegiate chapter. In Gary, Indiana! Its a Mighty Midwest Thang!


"Unite to turn America around and stand invincible in the rightousness of our convictions" "If not us who, and if not now, when?"-Mona Humphries Bailey

[CrimsonTide4]

Ashcroft Asked to Target Online Song Swappers
Fri Aug 9, 8:27 PM ET
By Andy Sullivan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers have asked Attorney General John Ashcroft ( news - web sites) to go after Internet users who download unauthorized songs and other copyrighted material, raising the possibility of jail time for digital-music fans.

In a July 25 letter released late Thursday, some 19 lawmakers from both sides of the aisle asked Ashcroft to prosecute "peer-to-peer" networks like Kazaa and Morpheus and the users who swap digital songs, video clips and other files without permission from artists or their record labels.

The Justice Department ( news - web sites) should also devote more resources to policing online copyrights, the lawmakers said in their letter.

"Such an effort is increasingly important as online theft of our nation's creative works is a growing threat to our culture and economy," the letter said.

A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment.

The recording industry says peer-to-peer services cut into CD sales, and has been battling them in court since 1999, when the five major labels sued pioneer service Napster ( news - web sites) Inc.

A U.S. federal judge ordered Napster to shut down its service in July 2001, but upstarts like Kazaa and Morpheus soon took its place. Kazaa, which in addition to music allows users to swap movies and other media files, said this week that its free software had been downloaded 100 million times.

Music labels have not ruled out suing individual users, and have pushed for the right to flood peer-to-peer networks with bogus files, or disrupt them by other means.

While a debate has raged on Capitol Hill over the proper balance between copyright and technological innovation, U.S. law-enforcement authorities have taken a minimal role.

The Justice Department filed a supporting motion siding with the record labels in the Napster case, but has brought no cases of its own.

The move was welcomed by the Recording Industry Association of America ( news - web sites), which represents the five major labels --Bertelsmann AG ( news - web sites), Vivendi Universal, Sony Corp ( news - web sites) ., AOL Time Warner Inc . and EMI Group Plc ( news - web sites) .

"There is no doubt, mass copying off the Internet is illegal and deserves to be a high priority for the Department of Justice ( news - web sites)," said RIAA Chairman Hilary Rosen in a statement.

An analyst for a digital civil-liberties group said the Justice Department probably had better things to do with its time.

The letter "implies that Justice should be going after relatively innocent behaviors that I suspect most Americans don't think warrant the time," said Alan Davidson, an associate director at the Center for Democracy and Technology.

On the other hand, "we would much rather see current authorities be used before Congress goes and creates brand new laws," Davidson said.

A staffer for Texas Republican Rep. Lamar Smith, who signed the letter, said that lawmakers did not want FBI ( news - web sites) agents to arrest casual users but instead go after operators of network "nodes" that handle much of the traffic.

Among those signing the letter were: Delaware Democratic Sen. Joseph Biden; Wisconsin Republican Rep. James Sensenbrenner; Virginia Democratic Rep. Bobby Scott; Michigan Democratic Rep. John Conyers; North Carolina Republican Rep. Howard Coble; and California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...copyright_dc_1

[c&c1913]

Terrorists are plotting against us, child molesters and serial killers are running free, unemployment is up, BUT the government wants to spend good money and time to go after folks for burning cd's. Oooooookay.

[straightBOS]

This is what happens when the lobbyists run our governments.

We want better schools... DON'T YOU KNOW THERE'S A WAR GOING ON!!?!?

We want to end police brutality and DWB... DON'T YOU KNOW THERE'S A WAR GOING ON!!?!?

We want to ensure the security of our children playing in their own backyards.. DON'T YOU KNOW THERE'S A WAR GOING ON!!?!?

We want to download a CD that's proably not worth a dime anyways.. Uh, yeah we have time to get you for that.

Make better music not dumber laws.