It doesn't matter whether it's been released on CD or not - it's still copyright material. Someone somewhere still has the master copy.

About audio cassette and mp3, I agree with you, although since mp3 can reach a much wider audience (ie everyone with an internet connection) so it poses a much greater threat to the record companies.

Digital copying is a big issue as the internet becomes faster - since with digital copying there is no loss of quality (assuming you use the same protocol). mp3 is not much of a threat in this area since the quality is appalling compared to CD. As the quality gets better, the threat will grow.

A lot of people are doing research into watermarking audio on the internet and this could prevent a certain amount of piracy on the internet - however as soon as audio becomes analogue in the signal chain, it can be copied.

It is therefore impossible to prevent piracy since someone somewhere will take an analogue copy and then post it without watermarking.

Universal has actually invented some kind of a digital water mark,to be used on Promo CDs...for tracing mp3s.
Nothing that can't be cracked...

(I agree 100% with you,Joel Fielder!)

The thing that the publishing companies don't seem to understand, is that if someone can create a copyright / watermark for it - someone can then uncreate it.

Generally speaking nothing is secure. Look at how MS hyped the watermark on WMA, there was a crack out within 5 hours (or so).

There needs to be found some sort of way to legally embrace mp3.

It really is a pity that the mp3 mixes are illegal, even if there is no original CD. But that is what I thought might be the case.

Even though the dj may not object, the publisher / producer might. It would be interested to get a dj's view.

Speedy2k, aren't you buddies with one of the dj's, Fuzion??
Ask him?

Otherwise I'd be interested to hear the opinion of a dj who is already big - on his mixes being distributed, anybody know one?