On 5/11/2009 7:22 AM, somebody wrote:
> "Chambers"<ben### [at] pacificwebguycom>  wrote in message
> news:4a082f86$1@news.povray.org...
>> On 5/10/2009 11:23 PM, somebody wrote:
>>> So, if people start stealing tomatoes, farmers should adopt a new
> business
>>> model instead of seeking protection?
>> Completely different.  A tomato is a tangible object, of which a farmer
>> has a limited number.
> Typical fallacy.

How so?  I'm not sure what the fallacy is you're referring to; would you 
please enlighten me?

>> It's not like Apple can only sell X downloads of any given song, and
>> then it's gone.
>
> Same difference. A tomato does not represent value to a farmer as a fruit
> that he can eat. It's value is as a commodity that he can sell to make
> income. Steal a tomato, a farmer has one less to sell. Steal a song, Apple
> has one (OK, maybe 0.125 for you who say not all those would buy it anyway)
> to sell. It's about stealing away legitimate business by illegal means.

That is, of course, completely false.  A farmer has a limited number of 
tomatoes in their possession which they may then sell.

Apple has no such limit on the number of songs that the iTunes store may 
sell; they may sell as many copies of each song as they wish.

>> Whether you like it or not, music downloads are here to stay.
>> Technologically, there's nothing you can do that would seriously prevent
>> piracy.
>
> Just as car thieves are here to stay. All protection schemes can be broken.
> But both technologically and legally, there's much to be done to minimize
> the damage.

Of course there is.  However, stealing a car is not nearly as easy as 
copying a song.  For one thing, the car exists as a tangible object, 
whereas the copy of the song is not.  In fact, calling such actions 
"theft" is quite inaccurate, because the owner retains the original; 
really, it's unauthorized usage of the copyrighted material.

>> it makes sense that businesses
>> find a viable means of support rather than continuing to sue their own
>> customers.
>
> By definition, one who steals is not a customer.

Not true; you're assuming that piracy and purchase are mutually 
exclusive, while it is certainly possible to both copy music illegally 
and still purchase authorized copies.

The music industry's heavy handed tactics of suing individual file 
sharers, many of whom do indeed purchase music, has had a hugely 
negative impact on the image of the industry as a whole.

This has, in fact, spurred piracy as people begin to see the issue as a 
moral one rather than an economic one.  Many people are now completely 
unwilling to purchase retail music because the proceeds will be going to 
support the so-called "evil music companies."

Really, the issue has three separate parts, and the music industry comes 
out on the losing side of two of them.

1) Legally, unauthorized copying is currently outlawed.  Because of 
this, the music industry as a whole is within their rights to prosecute 
those who illegally copy music.

2) Technologically, there is no practical way to impede the illegal 
copying of unauthorized materials.  Making a digital copy is so 
incredibly easy (especially compared to stealing a tangible item, such 
as a car, or even something as small as a tomato) that any attempt to 
place a technical limit on it has, and will continue to, fail horribly.

3) Philosophically, there are very few people who think the current 
legal situation is fair.  The way compensation currently works is based 
on the difficulty of mass production, distribution and marketing of 
physical items (LPs, CDs or audiocassettes).  Little of that has to do 
with the music itself; in fact, if anything artists are currently being 
undercompensated by the very corporations masquerading as their advocates.

The current system, where a large corporation reaps massive rewards for 
the time, efforts and creativity of the artists they represent, is an 
aberration of history.  It came about with the introduction of LPs, and 
will apparently soon go away with the revenues again returning to the 
creators of the music (the writers and performers).

-- 
...Chambers
www.pacificwebguy.com

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