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Illegal music downloading

Seriously guys, i have seen first hand what this is doing to the music industry now that i am more deeply involved with it. Illegal downloading is killing the industry more than you would think. Sales are down 75% and it's affecting the artists more than the labels. It's even preventing many good artists from producing an album.

Did you know that an average album takes a MINIMUM of $100,000 to produce?

Did you know that a record deal means that the label loans you the cash and that you have to pay them back in full before you make a dime on your sales?

Neither did i until i got involved with this!

So please, download from the various sites that offer pay services. You can get them for as little as 99 cents - 1.99 at various places. Its not much.The only thing i condone on the free download sites are mix sets such as radio shows or club sets that arent for sale to the general public.

I haven't illegally downloaded anything in almost 3 years now.



edit: Sorry, almost 4 years.

I've been preaching this for years.

Yes you are absolutly right Jay. Illegal downloading of albums and singles and stuff is something that has been hurting not only the EDM industry but the music industry in general. If you like it please go and buy it. Support those that support you.

It is one thing to download the sample of an album or maybe even a full album just to see if you like it but downloading it because it is a freebie and you dont wanna spend the cash is totally different. If these artists stop making the music just imagine what impact it will have on the industry.

Here is the way I see it.

As a poor friggin student that�s in debt, I don�t have money to throw away on every CD I want. So I download most of them, and buy the ones that I absolutely, positively, cannot be without.

Once I�m done with my academic career, then I�ll have the spare money. Until then, going to concerts and events, are supporting enough in my opinion.

plus, exposure of any kind is good

jayx you're recording an album?

quote:

Originally posted by evil_cookie Here is the way I see it. As a poor friggin student that�s in debt, I don�t have money to throw away on every CD I want. So I download most of them, and buy the ones that I absolutely, positively, cannot be without. Once I�m done with my academic career, then I�ll have the spare money. Until then, going to concerts and events, are supporting enough in my opinion. plus, exposure of any kind is good

well when i was in school we didnt have downloading and i was able to get the music i wanted.

its only $1 or 2, its not much but it means so much.

Also without sales the numbers dont get into the soundscan charts which means that people are more reluctant to book the artist and record stores are more reluctant to stock the record. everything is sales driven including appearances.

No im not making an album but ive met a lot of bands and artists as well as record label people who have all told me the same story. Its hurting.

quote:

Originally posted by TranceGrooves If you like it please go and buy it. Support those that support you.

I agree ... Just one thing ... how about writers?? what the hell did they do that people can go to a library and borrow the book read it for free and return it. Doesn't the writer miss out on his/her share of some coin?? Or is there something I am missing?

quote:

Originally posted by jennypie I haven't illegally downloaded anything in almost 3 years now. edit: Sorry, almost 4 years.

why couldn't you just change the 3 to a 4?

Back on topic; I used to download lots of albums back in the day. I still do, but if I like the album then I go out and buy it. I've also stopped downloading tracks completely, and now buy them off Beatport.

The only thing I download is sets, which is okay as far as I know.

Re: Illegal music downloading

quote:

Originally posted by Jayx1 Seriously guys, i have seen first hand what this is doing to the music industry now that i am more deeply involved with it. Illegal downloading is killing the industry more than you would think. Sales are down 75% and it's affecting the artists more than the labels. It's even preventing many good artists from producing an album. Did you know that an average album takes a MINIMUM of $100,000 to produce? Did you know that a record deal means that the label loans you the cash and that you have to pay them back in full before you make a dime on your sales? Neither did i until i got involved with this! So please, download from the various sites that offer pay services. You can get them for as little as 99 cents - 1.99 at various places. Its not much.The only thing i condone on the free download sites are mix sets such as radio shows or club sets that arent for sale to the general public.

While I agree with you entirely that more people need to move to buying rather than relying on downloads in order to support the artists - it's important to note that many of the stats/figures here don't apply to electronic music as a whole (i.e. the $100,000 cost to produce an album).

However the electronic industry is at a much larger defecit than the maintstream industry (which may seem obvious) but consider the fact that many of the larger electronic labels have gone under or are holding off on releasing anywhere near as much as they used to. Compilations and the like for the most part in this industry are the major source of money for producers - and even those as of late have declined significantly in number.

In addition it's become pretty clear that more and more labels are becoming cheap with their artists (I'll leave out names). They don't stand by their agreements because they struggle to make ends meet and thus end up ripping off the artists who generally don't bother making a fuss because it's too much of a hassle (again, referring to the electronic industry). This obviously doesn't justify anything, but if both the labels and artists themselves aren't making enough to keep at it, then the problem will continue its growth in marginal spurts.

quote:

Originally posted by Jayx1 Also without sales the numbers dont get into the soundscan charts which means that people are more reluctant to book the artist and record stores are more reluctant to stock the record. everything is sales driven including appearances.

can it be the other way around? with viral marketing from music oriented websites like myspace, alot of underground artists have gotten greater exposure that they wouldn't have gotten otherwise in a traditional non-digital bricks+mortar scheme

the bottom line... if you're talented, and produce good music, ppl will find you. if you suck, then you won't make money.

I agree 100% that you need to support the artist, and my music collection reflects that.

What I do not buy are the sales stats that downloading is 100% responsible for the decline in sales. Yes this is the same old argument, but so is blaming downloaders for an already weak library of music.

Lets face it, music is not the same as it used to be. I spent $1000s in the 90's for quality music that I loved, and just could not live with out. Since about 1999, I have switched music genres, and the only reason my spending even comes close is because the CDs I know buy (EDM) are twice as expensive as mainstream CDs that I used to buy.

So yes, support the artist, but don't blame people for not paying for music when they do not think its worth it.

Anyone have any bar charts on CD and music sales in Canada? I'm curious as how downloading has affected the industry over the years. I heard conflicting info, like music sales are down for big name comemrcial artists, but the internet has increased sales for independants... So what is it?

quote:

Originally posted by Abercrombie Anyone have any bar charts on CD and music sales in Canada? I'm curious as how downloading has affected the industry over the years. I heard conflicting info, like music sales are down for big name comemrcial artists, but the internet has increased sales for independants... So what is it?

that sounds pretty reasonable to me.

plus, you can't really attribute sales, whether increasing or decreasing, to the internet alone. there could be a number of other factors that could be affecting sales.

quote:

Originally posted by infinity HiGH why couldn't you just change the 3 to a 4?

I dunno? I'm weird okay??!!

quote:

Originally posted by jennypie I'm weird okay??!!

...

are you asking me?

There is far less of an excuse to not pay for music now that you can d/l singles from places like iTunes and Beatport for under $2.00 a track.

Before this, I didn't really have as much a problem with some file sharing. When artists and labels stopped caring about putting out quality ALBUMS, and instead would give us 1 or 2 decent tracks along with a bunch of filler *crap*, they shouldn't be surprised to see people unwilling to spend $15-20 for a CD or $5+ for a single.

It didn't make illegal file sharing "right"...but if you give us a quality product at a reasonable price, and a convenient method of obtaining it, most people will pay for it. I think that's happening now with downloads and with the ability to preview a portion of every track online as well.

I'm not a rabid downloader or anything but I do occasionally download a track or two. The majority of my mp3 collection (905% of it) is obscure covers, I like hearing a country act do a Metallica song, stuff like that. To buy those tracks would require a lot of effort to hunt them down. But don't we pay premium on cassettes (since the 80's) and blank cd's because of downloading? What's the government doing with that revenue? Aren't they redistributing it to the artists?

Just playing devil's advocate. I know people who say as far as they are concerned it's legal to download in this country because of that premium we pay.

quote:

Originally posted by Porky can it be the other way around? with viral marketing from music oriented websites like myspace, alot of underground artists have gotten greater exposure that they wouldn't have gotten otherwise in a traditional non-digital bricks+mortar scheme the bottom line... if you're talented, and produce good music, ppl will find you. if you suck, then you won't make money.

so people discover these bands... then they go and download their songs.

So the artist still doesnt make much money.

Its a really bad cycle. At 1 to 2 bucks a song people really dont have an excuse for stealing music

quote:

Originally posted by Orko I agree 100% that you need to support the artist, and my music collection reflects that. What I do not buy are the sales stats that downloading is 100% responsible for the decline in sales. Yes this is the same old argument, but so is blaming downloaders for an already weak library of music. Lets face it, music is not the same as it used to be. I spent $1000s in the 90's for quality music that I loved, and just could not live with out. Since about 1999, I have switched music genres, and the only reason my spending even comes close is because the CDs I know buy (EDM) are twice as expensive as mainstream CDs that I used to buy. So yes, support the artist, but don't blame people for not paying for music when they do not think its worth it.

i dont really blame people for not buying hard copies. That part of the industry still needs to sort its shit out. And im talking both label and retailer here. But like i said, online at a buck or two there is no excuse to steal the music.

And downloading is responsible for most of the decline. The stats show a massive drop off between 99 and 2000 when napster got big.

In Canada, I believe we are paying either $0.21 or $0.77 per CD-R in to offset the downloading. I guess an issue is if this money is properly used.

quote:

Originally posted by Abercrombie In Canada, I believe we are paying either $0.21 or $0.77 per CD-R in to offset the downloading. I guess an issue is if this money is properly used.

its not... its just a tax grab

I own over 90 cd's and recently sold my vinyl collection of about 78 records. I support my artists but I still download the odd track if I really, really want to listen to it. For instance, I remembered that Porno - Music Power track from a couple years ago after hearing it on Saturday night again. Where else am I supposed to get this track? I looked on ITunes and didnt' find it. And i'm certainly not going to buy the LP for something i'll listen to for a few days and then most likely delete.

But I figure I've given a lot to the industry, at least compared to most people. Certainly guys like Tiesto, PvD adn Ferry have done well off me but I also own 2 Mark Oliver CD's, Sander's albums, etc.

But you know, I have to be honest. THe music industry fucked themselves by pricing their cd's at 30-40 dollars while the artist actually sees very little of that. That's what you call corporate greed.

http://www.bradsucks.net/

quote:

Why would I buy your music when you give it away for free? Well I don't know, but people have been doing it and I hope they continue. Maybe they like a CD to hold in their hands, maybe they just want to support artists, maybe it's just flat-out pity. I put my music online because I want people to hear it. I'd obviously love to make a living making music, but if the worst-case scenario is becoming a well-heard artist that never gets paid, I can live with that.

I am not advocating being able to download all music for free... I just only think quality stuff deserves to be purchased.

as much illegal downloading hurts the industry in a lot of cases it actually helps it survive

Musicians do not make a lot of money of their tracks or albums, usually its the companies/labels that make most off the sales. Artists make most money when they actually travel and perform at concerts/gigs. Downloading music is what actually spreads the word about that particular artist. There are a lot of artist whom i would have never known if i did not download their tracks. Obviously it does not make it right but i find it humorous when people tell me to buy every single track that i want to hear. Yes i do buy tracks but only after i decide that yes i really like this artist and yes this track/album is worth it.

It is much better now since the arrival of myspace because now you do not need to download the tracks illegaly in most cases but you can actually listen to tracks on there.

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