Illegal Downloading Of Music, Movies, Etc.

[MakahaMusic]

right or wrong?

As a songwriter myself, in my opinion, it is disrespectful to the singer/artist and songwriter to download his/her song illegally. While a few artists do give away their music for free, most don't want to do that. If I wanted a piece of music or a movie but can't afford it, I just do without it. I won't download it illegally, because I wouldn't want the same thing to happen to a song that I wrote. And it's not just about lost revenue. It's about the rights of a copyright holder to determine how his creative work is used. While it may be debatable if illegal downloading is 'theft' or not, what is absolutely not debatable is a creator's 'copy-right'--which is the legal right to control distribution of his/her song. And by illegally downloading a song, you are stepping on the creator's rights.

Some people have suggested that songwriters can make their money from concerts, but most of the best songwriters are pure songwriters and they don't perform live. For example, Diane Warren is one of the most successful songwriters of all time, and she doesn't give concerts. Craig Wiseman is another example among many. Writing songs and singing are two different talents, and it's extremely rare to do both at the highest level.

Personally, I think illegal downloading of any copyrighted material is wrong. It's like a slap in the face to the singer/artist. And if you can't afford to buy it, then do without it.

So that's my opinion....

What is yours??

EDIT:

6/14/10--

I bought two more copies of the new Charice Pempengco CD from Amazon.com. I bought one copy when it released last month. So that's three copies I bought of the same CD, just to support her, because I want to see her succeed. (she's on the Reprise label, which is a major label, and record labels tend to drop artists off their roster who don't sell enough CDs). When my Oud teacher released his CD with his band (Partners in Time), locally here in Hawaii, I bought two copies to support him and his teenage daughter who is crippled and wheelchair bound.

From some of the posts in this thread, some people don't have a credit card and their parents won't let them use their credit card to buy music/singles off of itunes, and I understand that. That's a grey area that you can't do anything about--your hands are tied. That's understandable.

But for those who get an allowance, or are in college or especially those who have graduated college and have jobs, it's different, there's no excuse, to me anyway. Buying music is the honorable thing to do, and more importantly it's the responsible thing to do. If you are eventually going to have children, what kind of example are you setting for your children with the attitude, "I can illegally download music and movies, because I CAN..."

That's the same attitude where people hunt and kill whales because they CAN (see Japan currently on Whale Wars), they cut down rainforests because they CAN, they can club a baby fur seal in the head for its fur, because they CAN. They can pollute the environment, because they CAN. If that is what being human is about, then I weep for the future, I thought we were suppose to be improving not regressing.

To me, if you claim to support a singer/artist and can afford to pay for their music, but refuse to pay and get it illegally for free, are you really a fan of that singer? I don't know....

I'm just hoping the people who download illegally are not the same people who are going "green" and helping the environment and trying to be a 'responsible' person, while at the same time stepping all over creator's rights by illegally downloading music, being a hypocrite.

[Guest xdeathberry]

It is wrong.. but it also promotes their music.

I mean, if you couldn't download anything, then most would do without.

CD sales and concert sales would drop.

If you can't afford to buy a CD, why buy a concert ticket?

On the other hand, some [or most] people usually just download the song to see if it's good.

Depending on whether they like it or not, they usually go BUY the actual authentic CD.

plus, downloading random songs can introduce you to a new artist, etc.

[MakahaMusic]

It is wrong.. but it also promotes their music.

I mean, if you couldn't download anything, then most would do without.

CD sales and concert sales would drop.

If you can't afford to buy a CD, why buy a concert ticket?

On the other hand, some [or most] people usually just download the song to see if it's good.

Depending on whether they like it or not, they usually go BUY the actual authentic CD.

I forget the exact stats, but I remember reading about some research done, that when people download the song online first, and they like it, most do not purchase the CD. It was something like 80% or around there... I have to go look up the weblink.....

About your other point, true, it can promote the artist/singer, possibly bringing more people to the concert, but the free download doesn't do a thing for the songwriter (unless the singer is the songwriter). How does the songwriter get revenue for that?? Again Diane Warren doesn't give concerts, in fact, she can't sing very well. Neither can Craig Wiseman (I've heard him singing his own songs on his publishing company's myspace page, and he has a terrible voice), but they are both incredible songwriters. In fact, Diane Warren is arguably the most successful in the last 30 years, check out her credentials online, it's unbelievable....hundreds of recordings by major artists....and she can't sing

[Guest xdeathberry]

haha That kinda sucks.

Yeah, I do agree it's bad, but if I were that passionate about writing songs, honestly, I'd just be happy if people enjoyed listening to them.

Sure I'd have to make a living, but I'd scrape by.

But that's personally.

[MakahaMusic]

plus,

downloading random songs can introduce you to a new artist, etc.

This is true, but....

I believe there is something like one million bands/singers on myspace, literally....

How is anyone suppose to weed out the good from the bad?

Probably 90% of them are not very good. It takes a long time to develop into a good songwriter. My first 20 songs or so that I wrote were so awful, I would never play it for anybody, but now I'm to the point where I got my first royalties last year for a placement of one of my songs on the ABC TV daytime soap opera "One Life To Live" and I had some songs forwarded to Toby Keith and a few publishers. But it takes a long, long time.... Even Diane Warren was rejected by publishers for 12 years!! Someone of that caliber rejected for that long. She said if she had given up, she would still be flipping hamburgers, and now she is a legendary songwriter.

Who has the time to listen through hundreds of thousands of singers/bands who are online to find the good ones.

While the major label record companies days may indeed be numbered, and while the major labels have not always been friendly to songwriters, especially with their controlled composition clauses in the legal contracts with their singers/artists, major labels did serve as a filter. Yes, there were still terrible artists that made it through (Milli Vanilli anyone?), but generally they weeded out singers/artists that had no commercial appeal. Before the internet exploded, singers/bands strived to be with a major label because it meant national exposure and distribution that you couldn't do by yourself because it takes a lot of....money, which the major labels had.

They had the money to promote artists nationwide and great influence on what the radio stations played (payolla)...

If the major labels cease to exist, how will people find new artists?

People already know about the established artists--Mariah Carey, Usher, etc. but if the major labels aren't there anymore, how will people find the new artists?

Word of mouth??

It will only take you so far....

At a panel held by Taxi (Taxi is an indie A&R company that helps indie/unknown songwriters and artists connect with the music industry--I'm a member with them), Michael Laskow, the president of Taxi, asked a group of about 60 Taxi members (and some of Taxi members are awesome songwriters and artists, I've heard their stuff on Taximusic.com, and some are freakin' awesome) how many Taxi members had made at least $10,000 promoting and selling their music online.

No one raised their hand.

How many made $1,000?

Still no one raised their hand.

$500??

One person raised his hand.

Michael made his point that the "new" music industry--the "online" music industry--where artists are free to take their careers into their own hands, free from major labels who take huge cuts from their royalties. But they have to do their own promotion/marketing, selling....it's not what it's cracked up to be. There are soooooo many bands/artists/singers out there, literally hundreds of thousands, that it's almost impossible to be found.

That's what the major labels brought to the table, they had the money and the expertise to market new artists to the general public.

If the major labels go down....

Good luck trying to find "good" artists and songs....

The moral of the story, support your favorite band/singer by buying his/her/their CD!!

[Guest jaeka]

It's the recession (well in the UK), no one can afford to buy them anymore. Rofl.

I find it wrong, but that would make me a hypocrit. If I went out one day and went, "I'm not going to download any music at all and just buy it..."

I would have about 3 cds. ;___; I download it cause I don't have the money to spare for it, to be quite frank.

[Guest creaturedreams]

They still make millions of dollars even If we "illegally" download their music, so nothing wrong.

[MakahaMusic]

They still make millions of dollars even If we "illegally" download their music, so nothing wrong.

How about songwriters like myself who are trying (very hard) to break into the music industry. If you download my song for free, I don't get anything out of it.

You try writing a song, especially a song that you have close to your heart (I have some I wrote about my Dad who had a stroke) and then have someone steal it, and see what it feels like.

Only the very top tier songwriters could ever make millions of dollars.... You're talking the top 0.1%

What I think will happen eventually is that there will be no more pure songwriters, that artists/singers will write their own songs and find out how hard it is to write a commercially appealing popular song. The good songs will become harder and harder to find. People who download illegally will essentially hurt themselves in the long run. There won't be pure songwriters who take the time, the years of dedication to study to the craft of songwriting, because it will make less and less sense to invest time and money (yes, it costs money to produce demos to pitch to publishers unless you're ALSO an awesome producer and singer and can produce the song yourself that puts the song in a good light)

If you look at the movie industry sideof piracy, a Hollywood film studio can spend over a 100 million dollars making a film, especially the films with cutting edge special effects, of course it doesn't neccessarilly mean it'a a great movie because of special effects, I'm just saying that those types of movies will cease to exist if people keep downloading them illegally. Because how is a film studio suppose to make that money back, if people pirate the movies, sometimes as soon as the movie releases in the theaters??

I believe if internet piracy continues, at least those types of movies will cease to exist, so illegal downloaders are hurting everybody in the long run....

[MakahaMusic]

It's the recession (well in the UK), no one can afford to buy them anymore. Rofl.

I find it wrong, but that would make me a hypocrit. If I went out one day and went, "I'm not going to download any music at all and just buy it..."

I would have about 3 cds. ;___; I download it cause I don't have the money to spare for it, to be quite frank.

I do see where you are coming from, but at least you admit it's wrong.....

[MakahaMusic]

Yeah, I do agree it's bad, but if I were that passionate about writing songs, honestly, I'd just be happy if people enjoyed listening to them.

Sure I'd have to make a living, but I'd scrape by.

but it does follow, if someone could make enough to do it full time, do it as a job, you would get better at it, be it songwriting, acting, etc.....

[Guest creaturedreams]

Have you tried youtubing your music to get noticed? I understand your points, don't mean to offended you just talking from my values and views on downloading music.

[Guest kOoHII]

think of it this way: no one would know about YOU if it weren't for downloading....and hallyu would cease to exist. yes you can give me that moral guilt trip...but fact is, there are many commerical advantages to illegal downloading that is being overlooked. take the hallyu movement - no illegal downloading => no popularity => no selling overseas licenses, no overseas concerts, no overseas dvds/cds, no opportunities abroad for stars...etc. think about how much that racks in itself versus the amount you'd make if only a select few from your home country, who so happened to want to dish out $20+ for you

also, music execs. complain about decreasing cd sales. however, they don't often tell you rising concert ticket sales which racks in much much more profit than cd sales. one dbsk concert at the olympic stadium is equivalent to 100,000+ cds sold was it? (not including merchandises). for songwriters, it's time they renegotiate their contracts just as tv writers did with downloading licenses.

also, you say that it's hard to weed out the good and hte bad musicians online, hence it doesn't provide reason to support illegal downloading. keep in mind that online has become a major source of recruiting and if you're outstanding...you will have some sort of fan base that will get you more gigs and potentially a major contract. it's not an easy path...but it's easier than solely trying to get spotted or "bumping" into a recruiting exec.

[Guest prisonerzero]

I know it's wrong, but I still download some music. Why? Simply, I cannot afford to buy all these CDs even though I would love to. Plus, the majority of my iPod is foreign stuff and all I could get off iTunes is Morning Musume. If I really like an album/artist, I will go out and buy CDs or get songs from iTunes.

[Guest mangchilo]

I do feel guilty about it, but the truth is that I would never even have heard of 90% of the music currently on my mp3 player if it weren't for people distributing all sorts of music from all over the world over the internet, much less have been able to get my hands on a lot of it without some serious globe trekking.

[Guest changf.baby]

too lazy to do either. i just listen to dat richard simmons on youtube

everyonce in a while ill torrent a bulk of albums or a discog.

[Honey.bee]

I'm sure half of the downloaders feel guilty about it. As for me, even though I only download once or twice in a month, it's still the same guiltyness. However, I can't afford the money to buy albums or singles (as if my favourite artist's stuff are sold here ). Though I know it's wrong, I secretly think downloading adds a lot to the artists, or maybe even the fans. I understand that all the song writers, artists, ect goes through all the hardships and frustration trying to make ONE song but the sad truth can't be helped.

[Guest onetwothuy]

This excuse is often used, but it's very true: I simply do not have enough money to buy all of my music.

[Guest Courtknee]

I download music. Tbh, I don't care if it's wrong or not.

If I were to pay for all the music I've downloaded - I'd basically be bankrupt.

But I like music - sooo... I just download.

[Guest blissful*sin]

its wrong so i dont do it now

in the past ima kinda guilty

i'll buy the cds/dvds if i really really like it

juss to show my support for the artists

[1love]

It's wrong, buy the cd to support the artist.

I don't download, but I stream the movie or cd online if that counts.