[OS:N:] Current file sharing is bad for consumer rights

(before I even start: what follows, as 99% of what seen on this list
in the last week, *is* right on topic here. Maybe wrong, but on
topic. If we talked of everything but the kitchen sink is because
(Open Source or not) SW is indeed at the center of daily life now)

On Sat, Aug 16, 2003 10:42:53 at 10:42:53AM +1000, Les Bell ([email protected]) wrote:
 
> (Feel free to beat up on major record companies, etc. here. My position on
> them is that they're pretty much getting what they deserve. On the other
> hand, stealing music is still wrong, and two wrongs don't make a right).

Exactly.

Things like these are bad:

1)       Pricing 20 bucks what costed 2 to make
2)	 If 1 buck per song is OK, not giving you the choice of the 20
	 songs 

but it's just free market, nothing ethically wrong. Things like
*these* are worst:

3)       Giving only a little part of the 18 bucks back to the author
4)	 Saying after that that you can't give away what you
	 purchased, borrow it to a friend, rip it to listen music
	 on the road, or play it back with *your* OS of choice

And all the proud "file sharing" with Napster, Gnutella and what not
is even worst. It is the best weapon RIAA and friends could dream.

Good music (well, art in general) is essential to make life worth living
and improve one's mind. But is not air, food, water, shelter or
life-saving drugs.

One *can* live decently even 7/8 months in a row without any *new*
music, or just listening to live one (and I swear that the quote at
the end came out randomly by my sig generator, which as many times in
the past, seems to understand what's going on).

At the same time, the twists of modern economy make big companies
much more vulnerable than individuals in the same time frame. If you
don't announce risings dividends every day, you're toast.

If the immature whiners who download music 24/7 could just realize
this, and, for just a few months, stopped the downloads *and* any
purchase of (*)
		music
		empty CDs
		bigger hard disks
		broadband connectivity

the music companies would be ruined quickly by the application of
their own rules, AND by the other lobbies jumping at their
throat, since those other markets are at least as big as the
music/film one. Divide et impera.

All file sharing and the crusades about the right to copy music (**)
have obtained so far is fueling the "piracy" theme, making multimedia
on Free SW unnecessarily hard and helping laws like the EU one which
puts a tax to refund "authors" of "lost" income on all virgin CDs and
VHS tapes. If I backup my own data or record my kids unwrapping their
Christmas gifts I have to pay, to refund those starving music and film
companies which may be robbed by copying music or movies on those
media.
	       
Thanks, music sharing guys, heralds of users freedom. Sensible move.

	Ciao,
		Marco Fioretti

(*) The Malaysian government suggested something like this some months
    ago! 
(**) in case this weren't clear, I'm not questioning in *this* message
     if one has or has not that right. I only want to point out that
     the method chosen so far is certainly one of the most stupid
     ones.

-- 
Marco Fioretti                 m.fioretti, at the server inwind.it
Red Hat for low memory         http://www.rule-project.org/en/

Needs are a function of what other people have.


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