January 21, 2013
"The American Assembly, a research center at Columbia University, released a study finding that users of peer-to-peer (P2P) sharing networks purchase 30 percent more music in total dollar amount than people who didn’t participate in unauthorized file sharing. While non-P2P users had libraries containing more legitimately-purchased files, they only had an average library of 1300 songs, compared to an average P2P user’s library of 2,000. The discrepancy was especially staggering in Germany, where P2P users’ libraries were found to be nearly 625 percent larger than their non-P2P using peers."

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Downloaders Spend More Dollars On Music (TDW)

In other words, when the RIAA cracks down on piracy, it is biting the hand that feeds them.  The report notes (pg. 21) that “Our study confirms numerous others on this point, including work by RIAA survey firm NPD (2012), the British government Ofcom (2012), and French enforcement agency HADOPI (2011).”  The report also notes that “As copying and downloading for free diminish in the 30- to 49-year-old group, purchasing remains the same, suggesting that these practices are mostly complementary to legal acquisition, not strong substitutes for it.”  So the idea that every illegally downloaded song represents lost profit is about as credible as the MPAA’s assertions that the invention of the VCR would destroy the movie industry.

Related: Rhapsody Founder Rob Reid debunks the $ 58 Billion Cost of Piracy.

10:58pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZMMjnxcLtgfd
(Notes: 18)
  
Filed under: politics file sharing piracy mpaa riaa p2p 
May 24, 2012
LimeWire Sued For More Money Than Exists In the World

antigovernmentextremist:

Not The Onion:

It’s no secret that LimeWire was once a hotbed of peer-to-peer music piracy, but the RIAA has now attempted to sue it for $72 trillion - more money than exists in the world today.

LimeWire was shut down in October 2010, but litigation continues from music bodies around the world, including Merlin which represents independent labels. 

LTMC: Rob Reid gave an excellent TED talk awhile back demonstrating just how silly  the RIAA’s damages calculations in piracy lawsuits are.  One wonders how many more of these ridiculous lawsuits need to be brought before somebody in Congress decides to end this silly charade of rent-seeking by the RIAA and reform the DMCA damages provisions.

10:48pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZMMjnxM5ODJ8
(Notes: 107)
  
Filed under: politics riaa file sharing piracy mpaa limewire 
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