(Thank you Melissa for publishing this post for me)
“From 1999-2012, Canadian recorded music sales decreased
by more than 50%. Establishing rates in Canada
that are reflective of both market and international rates is critical for
Canadian artists whose livelihood depends on earning a decent living wage from
their profession, for music companies who actively develop and nurture Canadian
talent throughout the world, and for all Canadians who value a healthy and
prosperous music industry.” From the “Artists
& Music Companies Support Re:Sound Application for Judicial Review of
Copyright Board Tariff 8 Decision” from Music Canada published on June 16,
2014.
Two years ago (July 2012)
I wrote the blog below on music and free culture which was about making ethical choices
in how we buy products to ensure creators are rewarded.
While in the past I have
been critical of Google and their policies around access to content and piracy,
Google Play has enabled me to purchase a range of content I would not otherwise
have access to for example music, books and television series. Although not in
my preferred format it has been made available. Unfortunately I am not sure how
much of a percentage of the total cost goes to the content creators.
@lyndahere and free
culture...taking responsibility for your actions published Wednesday, 11 July
2012
Free culture….
I recently read a blog about an American student Emily White who was
working as an intern at her college radio station. The student stated openly
and honestly that she had downloaded approximately 11 000 songs without paying
for them and had only ever paid for 15 CDs in her life. She was under the
impression like many young people that it was acceptable to download songs and
distribute them for free from the various file sharing sites available. The
student now wanting to work in the music industry is thinking about the moral
implications of her actions on artists and the industry she loves. There were
nearly 500 responses to her blog posting and raised some very interesting
responses justifying illegal downloading. David Lowery is an academic teaching
music economics as the University of Georgia in the United States and his response
raised many issues that affect musicians and singers like Great Big Sea.
I have just downloaded my second officially free single off the Internet
by Great Big Sea’s Murray Foster’s Cocksure Lads “You Have Gotta Stay
Cocksure”. The single was available from the University of Toronto’s official
university magazine page where he did an interview (Murray Foster is an alumni
from the University of Toronto). My first single was Great Big Sea’s Alan Doyle
Mutiny on the Dawn available on his webpage. I also joined MySpace and have
access to a five free songs. I have never downloaded anything off a computer
other than webpages, documents and images for personal use (basically because I
don’t have the technical expertise and equipment). These songs weren’t that hard
to find. After a brief search I was also able to find a range of free illegal
music available for both concerts and recorded material made from copies
generously shared by people who had no part in creating it for Great Big Sea
and the members of the band.
David Lowery argues society should not accept the free culture while
praising the college student for grabbling with the moral and ethical
implications her actions are having on the profession she wishes to work in.
One of the primary reasons used to justify illegal downloading is the music
companies and their artists they sign make a lot of money. Not all artists and
musicians make millions of dollars like the Rolling Stones, Madonna and more
recently Justin Bieber. The average income of a musician is approximately $35 000
a year. Record companies pay advances and specific royalties to artists. And
most have to repay the advances from record sales. If there are insufficient
record sales then the debt may be written off. Under the law music companies are
required to pay songwriters and issue a license. Artists are paid approximately
9.1 cents for every song they sell. Despite popular belief artists don’t make
money on the road…they go on the road to support the sales of their album.
David Lowery recognises there are many moral and ethical issues
associated with the implementation of technology. Copyright has worked well for
musicians and artists of all kinds for hundreds of years and has protected
their work, allowed them to decide how they want to distribute it and make
money. But technology like the internet has radically changed all that. It is
through this change in technology that individuals and organisations can now
exploit artists and make their work freely available. Because people have unlimited
access they may do so without thinking about the moral and ethical implications
for society. These private corporations want individuals to recognise it is
acceptable practice to download illegal material because we have the technology
to do so even though it is illegal under the law. For example @lyndahere
uploads her illegal material onto Youtube. Because it is there and we are able
to watch it is acceptable.
David Lowery states “We are
being asked to continue to let these companies violate the law without being
punished or prosecuted. We are being asked to change our morality and
principals to match what I think are immoral and unethical business models”. Lowery continues Google supports
companies that place advertisements on sites that support piracy and include“The Pirate Bay,
or Kim Dotcom and Megaupload. They are “legitimate” companies like Google that
serve ads to... They are companies like Grooveshark that operate streaming
sites... and over the objections of the artist, much less payment of
royalties lawfully set by the artist”.
Lowery also raises the issue
of file sharing sites charging entry fees to their sites full of free material.
“It turns out that Verizon, AT&T, Charter etc etc are charging a
toll to get into this neighborhood to get the free stuff. Further, companies
like Google are selling maps (search results) that tell you where the stuff is
that you want to loot. Companies like Megavideo are charging for a high
speed looting service (premium accounts for faster downloads). Google is
also selling ads in this neighborhood and sharing the revenue with everyone
except the people who make the stuff being looted”. Youtube also support
piracy in that it allows people to establish accounts and load up illegally
copied material. They make their money from massive amounts of advertising. It
is becoming increasingly frustrating to watch legal videos on Youtube when we
are required to watch advertisements before the video. So there is a catch in
watching allegedly “free” material. Youtube is also full of accounts that
supply music with song words and images collected off the internet with some
having thousands of hits that have copyrighted material. Some illegally copied
videos even have advertising attached so Youtube must be aware that the account
is not the lawful owner.
The Record Industry Association of America (RIAA) have successfully
prosecuted individuals and companies (RIAA Homepage 2012). Through my research
I have found there are substantial attempts to establish education programs for
a range of people including parents and children and within the education
environment at all levels. But it is difficult to establish if these are
successful. Governments have been unable to successfully monitor and implement
strategies to combat breaches in the laws. People do it because it seems
acceptable behaviour within their culture, and justify it using a range of
reasons including as @lyndahere wrote the “music should be heard”.
People do it knowing they have little chance of being caught even if reported
to appropriate bodies such as the anti-piracy commission in Canada. David
Lowery argues rather than leaving it up to governments it is in the hands of
every individual like Emily White (and (@lyndahere) to examine their morals and
behaviour and decide that stealing music and royalties that rightfully belong
to the artists is not right. It is important to persuade others of this.
People really love the music artists produce. There are many things
young people and all people can do to support musicians and other employees of
the music industry other than pirating copies of concerts and recordings. This
includes buying their music from legitimate sources like itunes and directly
from their official sites and at concerts. As David Lowery states how difficult
is it to login on to their site and download music paying artists the money
due. Corporations advertise on illegal file sharing sites. Individuals can
write to corporations and not buy their products. Google technically does not
support piracy. For example I do not buy any products advertised on Youtube as
it supports accounts containing illegally downloaded material in particular
that of Great Big Sea and other artists. People can also write to their senator
or congressman about the issues such as copyright that currently being
negotiated and direct funds to those that create it. I do continue to watch
videos on Youtube but only those that are associated with legal sites and any
revenue would go to the artists and the industry….
