RIAA Insists That, Really, The Music Industry Is Collapsing

You know what, I'm totally new to this party in that this is my first ever written comment on the situation. But I have to admit, I'm starting to get pretty pissed.<p>The thing that really gets me, and the thing that has recently dawned on me is that file sharing isn't the only thing that is eating away at "sales" - I realized just yesterday I have never paid for a CD, or bought a DVD. In my younger years I "acquired" content in the common, frowned upon, ways but in the last 4+ years I can say the same for my content purchasing habits - I just don't do it.<p>You know why?<p>Netflix. Spotify. Love-film. Youtube. iPlayer. 4od.<p>I just don't have to buy content any more because I can pay ALL of these guys and get pretty much all the content I can watch. I genuinely haven't opened a torrent app or downloaded from a file locker for longer than I can remember and I am what you'd imagine is that kind of guy.<p>Just today I got a phonecall from LoveFilm telling me about their new "stream only" packages, and that they're now owned by Amazon so their streaming tech is much better than it used to be.<p>Not only that, but I'm sure maybe even yesterday I read an article about Katy Perry's (Mmm) millions (if not tens of) plays on Spotify earning her next to nothing.<p>Now look, I know a lotta guys do fileshare but file-sharing is not the only reason the industry(s) are on their arse, it infuriates me that this whole charade is still going, I know I don't need to tell you guys how ridiculous this is.<p>This isn't even to mention everything else that us guys read daily about what the industry should be doing differently, or how to improve this and that. This is a set of commercial deals they have in place that give me an extra option in addition to "download illegally", or "buy download/CD".<p>So I'm of the opinion that if you took file-sharing out of the equation, they still have nobody but themselves to blame.

To the RIAA, the Music Industry really is collapsing. They are used to the Music Industry being one entity that they have control over. But the music industry is just changing, and now many indie artists and producers are able to release music to a huge audience without using the distribution channels that the RIAA sought to protect. So, the Music Industry as it was known 10+ years ago is collapsing. However, in it's place is a new music industry with a vastly different business model. And the RIAA will either realize the world has changed and try to grab some market share before it's all gone, or they will cease to exist.

When The Oatmeal starts telling you what's wrong with your industry, it's time to shift gears:<p><a href="http://theoatmeal.com/comics/game_of_thrones" rel="nofollow">http://theoatmeal.com/comics/game_of_thrones</a>

If lots of people are more than happy to do something for free, then just how important is it for those people to get paid to do that activity.<p>This isn't metal mining or oil drilling, making music is something humans do because they enjoy it. I would assume that 99% of music makers/creators/producers not only make no money from it, but pay money to do it. Thus, we could argue that when that 1% ceases to make money from the activity society, as a whole, is better off because that capital is now re-allocated somewhere else -- be it another leisure activity, healthcare, food, investment, etc.

"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."<p>Music industry should die for what it's trying to do with our liberties.

"Don't worry about sales. Make your money by touring."<p>If I were a musician, I'd be the studio based type. (Mike Oldfield, et al.) Re-taking and re-mixing until the recording is just right.<p>For someone like that hypothetical me, going on tour would be to expect people to pay to watch a substandard live performance or to watch me mime to a recording. I'd find both rather dishonest.<p>Its a good job I'm a software engineer. My customers expect me to test my work before delivery.

This is a standard case of technology cutting out the middleman.

I don't think anyone here knows how the music industry works.