The music companies do something wrong

I agree with Elizabeth.

I mostly buy used vinyl. Along with redbook, SACD is basically a way to sell all the CDs again, just an angle to get more profit from old titles. Anyone can get LPs for CHEAP and they sound better (assuming well recorded) than all other formats.

Rob

I agree the big music companies are making way too much money off CD's while most of the artists starve from the miniscule renenues. I read something recently about a mderately well known artist (can't remember the name off-hand, story may have been in NY Times) who made essentially nothing off CD's released by a major label even though they sold thousands. Now this artist is self-releasing and will make a modest profit, even though number of CD's sold will be significantly less. Shows you where the money goes. A comparison to movies may not be appropriate however, since most of them were released in theaters and have already made the movie company mucho dinero. Releasing on DVD just adds to the greed.

Not to defend the record companies, whose treatment of artists is generally indefensible, but no one's forcing you to buy anything. If the price is too high, or you don't like the usage restrictions, walk away.

Just remember that it's a free(-market) country, and the producers are free to do whatever they want, just like the consumers. If the record companies can make more money selling copy-protected disks, that's what they will do. And if the artists can make more money releasing their own disks rather than signing with a record company, they'll do that, too. (Most of them don't, you may have noticed, which suggests that an unfairly small piece of a big pie is still better than a bigger piece of a small pie. But the economics of that could change with time.)

Contrary to the title of this thread, I wouldn't assume that the companies are making a mistake here. I presume they know their market better than you do. (You just might not be part of it!)

That's the way capitalism works. And anyone who can afford a high-end audio system has no standing to complain about the iniquities of capitalism.

I buy only 8-track tapes. They come real cheap at yard sales. Got the Isely Brothers Greatest Hits and Jim Nabers Spirtuals this weekend for a dime each. You don't even have to flip'em over!

I'm waiting for the pirated sex tape of "Whitney does Norah"...coming soon as an mpeg - at your fingertips, and downloadable on the Information Superhighway. Expanding the hearts and minds, and warming the nether regions of millions of our young people each and every day!

Marco

That remark about only sending crap to the libraries is UNTRUE! There was just a huge deal on CNN a few days ago about how Kansas state officials have stepped in and confiscated what they deemed offensive. Confiscated CDs included Outkast, Rage Against The Machine, Notorious BIG, Stone Temple Pilots, Lou Reed & Devo???!!! Check out CNN.com.