Fun Stuff > BAND
The whole downloading music thing...
Johnny C:
Why not? Why is there a copyright on that particular combination of ingredients? Why is there a copyright on a particular combination of notes? What purpose does it serve? Who does it really benefit?
At this point we're arguing over copyright. I am against copyright in most if not all of its forms. It's a silly mechanism that's a great signifier of the absolute lack of trust in the current capitalist system. Why not worry about providing quality so that people will buy your stuff rather than clutching it tightly to your chest and using the legal system to shout "MINE" instead?
CryoSilver:
So essentially no one owns their own ideas, in your ideal world? Patent and copyright were established so that people could benefit from the things they came up with. And in most cases, they work the way they're supposed to.
Copyright has gotten a little out of hand (I think now it lasts for 70 years after the death of the creator of whatever is copyrighted), and patents last for 17 years. Why WOULDN'T someone expect that if they came up with something unique, someone else couldn't just come along and say "Hey that's great, I'm going to use it without your permission, okay?"
It isn't so much about providing quality so people will buy your stuff, as you say, so much as it is that if there were no copyright law, no one would BUY your music/art, because they could just copy it for free.
Johnny C:
Nobody making art needs to own their ideas beyond "I created this." You lose the point as soon as you say, "They NEED to benefit from it." The act of creation in itself is its own reward, and the most it's guaranteed. This is a point that has been emphasized and re-emphasized throughout the thread. Besides, how does filesharing not benefit the artist? We've once again established this: it generates interest in performers and their work, to a degree where merch and records are bought and shows are attended.
Copyright works for people who want to make money. For most others it's unnecessary at best.
KharBevNor:
So, what's your opinion then, downloading opponents, on buying and selling second hand CDs? Surely that's infinitely worse than file-sharing: not only is someone getting their greasy hands on the music without the band seeing a penny, but some interloping racketeer is making a profit out of it instead! How could we allow such things in the 21st century? Surely, once you get tired of a CD, you should be required to drop it in a woodchipper?
Another question: Ever used a VCR? Depending on where you live, taping live television is either fair use, fair use under certain circumstances, or technically illegal but nobody cares. Did you ever watch a film in school? That's illegal, read the warning at the front of a video or DVD some day.
You ever photocopied anything? Printed out a picture from the internet? Posted a picture from the internet on another website? Any of those actions could well have been an infringement of copyright.
Basically, what I'm saying is, copyright law is stupid and everyone has broken it, probably without even realising.
schimmy:
Drop it in a woodchipper?! But it's not yours! You're destroying the artist's property! How dare you!
So, yeah, basically I think what I believe has already been said by other people: File sharing is okay, but you should really try to support the band in some other way, if you can.
As Khar points out, everyone breaks copyright law, but only in the case of downloading media do people feel the need to point it out and make a big deal about it.
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