Do you think iPods and other mp3 players give more opportunity for pirating?

[Guest Ramm]

If they got rid of mp3 players, do you think that the pirating "business" would go down (note: go down *somewhat*)? It seems most downloads of music are for things like this. I think that these things make Apple money, but make other artists lose millions.

[Rafael Mendes]

In my case, i don't remember of getting any music from my buddy's mp3 players...

[Suzuka]

Meh, I've been a pirate since before iPods or MP3 players even existed

[GBK.Xscape]

the thing is people like Suzuka can say they started downloading before they got their iPod or whatever mp3 player they have but once they got their mp3 players did they download the same? For me i downloaded when i still had a cd player and it was cool i got some music and only some becuase cds cost money and i didnt have that many and they werent re-usable. but now that i have my 20gb ipod hey i can download an artist upload it to my ipod and if i dont like them eh whatever i have 5,000 songs of capacity so whats 15, when people can hold crazy amounts like 15,000 songs they want to do it. and downloading artists they would otherwise not download starts happening and then next thing they know they are almost at 3,000 songs like me before i know it. sure the ipod or mp3 player may have not gotten us started but i think they got people downloading a lot more than they would otherwise.

[cringemaster]

the thing is people like Suzuka can say they started downloading before they got their iPod or whatever mp3 player they have but once they got their mp3 players did they download the same? For me i downloaded when i still had a cd player and it was cool i got some music and only some becuase cds cost money and i didnt have that many and they werent re-usable. but now that i have my 20gb ipod hey i can download an artist upload it to my ipod and if i dont like them eh whatever i have 5,000 songs of capacity so whats 15, when people can hold crazy amounts like 15,000 songs they want to do it. and downloading artists they would otherwise not download starts happening and then next thing they know they are almost at 3,000 songs like me before i know it. sure the ipod or mp3 player may have not gotten us started but i think they got people downloading a lot more than they would otherwise.

 

sounds like what i do. "WTF, why is deerhoof still on here... well might as well leave it, i have 24 GB left"

[Azurael]

Didn't people have walkmans before they had iPods?

 

Sure, the iPod might make it more convenient to pirate large quantities of music, but it's not going to change people's morals.

[U.C.]

My first brush with Pirating was when I took my friend "Robert Miles - Dreamland", popped it into my Sony, popped in a blank on the side and pressed record. I have a 20GB iPod, I donot download music to fill it up, instead I only download what I really like such as ATB's new album. Anything I donot like, I delete.

 

I have been downloading music and software since as far as I can remember. I am not exactly the rich type, even if I was, I would only buy the stuff I reallly liked, like ATB's new Album.

[jglavin]

Personally, broadband was the only turning point. I'd been pirating with dialup and Hotline, but it was really hard. Music wasn't worth downloading at something like 1/2 hour for one 128kbps song. Only programs which you really wanted, games or small stuff was worth it. Once I got broadband (college) I started filling my harddrive with music I wouldn't have paid for. The iPod was an afterthought, and didn't change my habits.

[666satan]

No, I would download just as I am now... I listen to music on my computer more than I listen to it on my mp3 player. Mediamonkey (win only) is possibly the best program ever. What would stop me from pirating would be if I could only use iTunes to listen to digital audio.

 

 

and completely off topic:

Why do people (look at the first few posts in this thread) refer to any mp3 player as an iPod OR hold an iPod as a different thing?

sorry, but it bothers me.

Why do people (look at the first few posts in this thread) determine capacity in amount of songs?

sorry, but it bothers me even more.

Am I expecting people to be more tech savvy than the general public is? or do I have legit questions here?

And, why do we still refer to digital audio devices as mp3 players... alot play more than mp3 files, i guess it stuck from back in the day (my rio could only play mp3 files)

sorry for the rant.

[conk_the_monk]

Piracy is fed by the unfairness of the capitalist recording and production companies..... not by the new technology or people getting less ethical... Just one question to you all; How many "Darkside of the Moon by Pinkfloyd" album have you purchased? I know I have purchased at least 10. My point is this the people who thinks piracy is bad for the sector is only the ones that makes more money then they should via limiting the access and the rights of the customer by utilizing new media(cd,dvd,mpg.....) and technology (codec and copyrightlocks) Piracy is the term but it has been named by the people who are against it. I personaly think that people should have a right to access and exprience a product fully before they pay for it. If you like it you buy it.....

The other side is piracy has been a great thing for the listener by decreasing easy money making from record selling so the artist have moved towards live performances, tours and stage performances which is 100% better than any recorded or edited thing... So Bacto the first question; Is mp3 players increases piracy? the answer is May be.... but I personaly think increase of piracy helps the music lovers get closer to the artists who really wants to reach to the listener not to customers pocket....

[Berzerker]

Piracy is horrible because people who make billions per year can't make EVEN MORE money! What IS this world coming to?

[LeBron]

who cares. people do it. theres no stopping this {censored}

[RoyaRandom]

people would pirate either way

[DreadSukei]

I just have this to say....pirating has existed since before the Internet ever existed. It's always going to be there, and there will always be some {censored} looking to make a quick buck and selling or downloading something illegally. It's a fact of life. If you can't accept that, what business do you have using the internet? o_O...I mean really...

[Paranoid Marvin]

This was posted on What.cd today:

 

Hello listener...downloader...pirate...pseudo-criminal...

 

If you can read this, then you've more than likely downloaded this album from a peer to peer network or torrent.

 

You probably expect the rest of this message to tell you that you're hurting musicians and breaking just about every copyright law in the book. Well, it won't tell you that.

 

What I would like to tell you is that my record label understands that a large portion of people pirate music because it is easier than buying it. CDs scratch easily, most pay-per-download sites have poor quality and ****ty DRM protection, and vinyl is near impossible to find or ship without hassle.

In many cases I wonder why people buy CDs at all anymore. A few like the tangible artwork, some haven't adapted to MP3s yet, but most do it because they have a profound love for music and want to support the artists making it. Kind of restores your faith in humanity for a moment eh?

 

So, now what?

Like the album? About to go "support the artist" on iTunes?

Well, don't.

Alphabasic is currently in a legal battle against Apple because NONE of our material (Sublight Records included) receives a dime of royalty from the vast amount of sales iTunes has generated using our material.

 

Want to buy a CD just to show your support?

If you don't particularly like CDs, don't bother.

Retailers like Best Buy and Amazon spike the price so high that their cut is often 8 times higher than the artist's. Besides, most CDs are made out of unrecyclable plastic and leave a nasty footprint in your environment.

 

If you do particularly like CDs, buy them from the label (in our case, alphabasic.com). After manufacturing costs are recuperated, our artists usually receive over 90% of the actual money coming out of your wallet.

In addition, all of our physical products are made out of 100% recycled material.

 

Want to show your support?

Go here and browse our library of lossless, DRM-free downloads.

Already have that?

Then feel free to donate whatever you want to your favorite artist. 100% will go directly to them.

Hell, you can even donate a penny just to thank the artist.

 

If you really like 'The Flashbulb - Soundtrack To A Vacant Life' and want to show your support without it going to greedy retailers, distributors, and coked-up label reps, then click the button below.

[link to http://www.alphabasic.com/index2.htm ]

If you send us your mailing address, Alphabasic may occasionally send you various goodies (overstocks, stickers, even rare CDs) in appreciation and encouragement for your support.

Thanks for reading.

Who knows if my little business plan here will work to fund new releases, but even failure is better than the crappy label/distributor/retailer system musicians have suffered from for over 50 years.

We hope you enjoy the music as much as we do releasing it.

Finally, if you plan on sharing this release, please include this file. The only reason it is here is to show the listener where he can support his favorite artists!

 

Benn Jordan

CEO - Alphabasic Records

[U.C.]

Woah!! Now that is nice. I would love to see more record companies like this. Direct Buying should mean cheaper songs for us and more profits for them.

[mifki]

old news pm

[Colonel]

old news pm

Awesome new avatar Kiko.

[vbetts]

I think it definately contributes. But if you get rid of mp3 players, you might as well get rid of things like DVD players, CD players, HTPCs, and things like the AppleTV.