Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

Digital Piracy

Better Essays
1397 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Digital Piracy
The Rise of Digital Piracy and the fall of the Music Industry Imagine hearing your favorite band’s new song on the radio for the first time. You love it, and the moment you get home you head straight for your computer and find the song on iTunes. Upset with the fact that you would have to pay $1.29 for the song, you search the Internet and find one of the many digital piracy websites and download the song illegally. Sure, you may have obtained the song for free, but you have also just stolen from your favorite band. Growing up surrounded by music and being an aspiring musician myself, I quickly developed a great appreciation for the art. Because my father is a business manager for several bands, I went to quite a few concerts in my childhood; watching the artists perform on stage commanded my love and respect for what they were doing. As a true fan of the art of music, I was both shocked and disappointed when I learned that people were cheating the hard-working musicians by illegally downloading music via the Internet. Musicians work long hours and spend thousands of dollars writing, recording, and producing their music so stealing from them is no different from stealing from any store. Digital piracy is unethical because not only is the practice against the law, but it also has negative repercussions on the music industry as it yields little financial return to musicians and depicts a negative shift in consumer traditions.
One of the biggest issues today with digital piracy, according to Pola Gupta, professor of marketing at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, is that “people feel less guilty stealing from impersonal and invisible others than they do from visible persons” (Gupta 258). Many people don’t view illegal downloading as stealing because they are not physically taking something from someone else – they are simply downloading a file from the Internet, invisible to both the musicians and authorities. Globally, 10.6 million songs are downloaded illegally every hour (Gupta 264).
Due to the millions of people worldwide stealing music every day, the music industry has been in a constant period of regression for the past two decades. According to the manager of world-renowned rock band U2, Paul McGuinness, “digital piracy is degrading the music industry… 95% of music obtained around the world is downloaded illegally and unpaid for” (McGuinness). Because downloading music online for free has become so easy, people are no longer buying albums; instead, they only download the songs they want. This has shot down the profits of all musicians, as they no longer can rely on selling records to make money. Although digital piracy is not crippling highly successful bands, such as U2, young, developing artists are struggling to get started and maintain enough funds to continue making music. As McGuinness points out, “…today, control over their work is exactly what young bands are losing. It’s not their fault. It is because of piracy and the way the Internet has devalued their work” (McGuinness). It is becoming harder and harder for bands to sign with record companies because the record labels do not want to invest money in bands that aren’t going to produce profits.
Because fewer bands are getting record labels and already established bands aren’t selling as many albums, musicians are losing money and record stores are going out of business. Most successful bands from the seventies, eighties, and nineties produced at least ten albums in their careers; today, the most successful artists produce no more than four or five albums (Knopper 45). This is causing record stores all around the country to lose money, go out of business, and shut down. According to Steve Knopper, a regular contributor to Rolling Stone magazine, “nearly three quarters of all independent music shops have shut down in the last decade… only thirteen percent of people buy CDs from record stores now” (Knopper 45). With fewer people buying albums, record labels have even less incentive to give bands money to make CDs. Not are record labels hesitant to produce albums, but the artists also have less incentive to put in the time and effort to make albums. Some bands take years to put together albums and spend most of their money doing so (McGuinness). With only thirteen percent of people buying albums these days, many musicians believe the costs of making a new CD significantly outweigh the benefits.
One of the major consequences of decreased record sales is an increase in the prices of concert tickets and merchandise. In order to make up for the loss of profits surrounding album sales, musicians are forced to increase tour duration and/or jack up the prices of their concert tickets and merchandise. Since touring is very time consuming and exhausting, most musicians opt to simply raise their prices – something that concert goers are increasingly unhappy about. It is these same people, statistically and ironically, that are illegally downloading the artists’ music and causing them to raise the prices. “Ethics have become seemingly inexistent in our culture today – it is no surprise that the same people that complain about the prices of music and concerts and merchandise also actively participate in digital music piracy” (Gupta 272).
This lack of ethics pointed out by Dr. Gupta depicts a negative shift in consumer traditions, stemming from illegally downloading music. People in our society take for granted things such as music – a business that is not often thought of as a business. For example, someone may think he or she is a die-hard supporter of his or her favorite band, listening to the artists’ music or hanging up concert posters, but that same person might also download all of their music illegally. Without monetary support, businesses like the music industry cannot survive. Everything musicians do, from putting out albums to going on tour, is for the public. Everyone has the liberty to enjoy music, but many people believe they can free ride to have this liberty. If people continue to take advantage of and exploit the music industry, eventually there will be no more music (McGuinness).
It is widely accepted in the media world that any publicity is good publicity; for this reason, many people argue that although digital piracy is leading to a loss of revenue for bands, it is actually beneficial to them because more people listen to their music and become supportive fans. With this additional publicity, bands are able to sell more tickets to their concerts and in the long run make up for lost revenue from album sales. Despite the validity of this argument, stealing is still stealing – and is against the law. Not caring about stealing or breaking laws represents a negative change in consumer traditions we have been experiencing over the last decade or two. It starts with digital piracy, but who knows where it will go next? With the Internet rapidly expanding, it is only a matter of time before all digitized merchandise can and will be stolen. In addition, even if bands can make up for lost record sales by touring, there is still no incentive for them to produce new material to tour on without the short-term financial return an album can provide. Roughly half of a bands’ profit will come from record sales, and, as a business, a band cannot survive with the loss of these profits, no matter the circumstances (McGuinness).
Every choice comes with a consequence, whether it’s eating that last piece of pie or studying all day to secure a good grade. Knowing the potential consequences of a choice often plays a large role in the eventual decision. 7.7 million people each year choose to download music illegally, habitually and without paying any attention to the consequences (Gupta 264). If this continues, the music industry will keep disintegrating until there is nothing left of it. Only the consumer can implement the changes necessary to reverse the current trends of the declination of the music industry. Will you be one of the 7.7 million? Or will you have the initiative for change? The future of your favorite bands has a grim outlook; stop stealing from them so they can continue to make music and the music industry can once again thrive. Eliminating illegal downloading will recharge the music industry and may determine whether that favorite band was ever discovered in the first place.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Wk1 Dq 1

    • 729 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The current conflict between the recording industry and a portion of its customers who are involved in illicit copying of music files arose from innovations involving the compression and electronic distribution of files over the internet. Some of the ethical challenges associated with responses that threaten further innovation, ultimately reduce the chances of finding solutions that hold appeal for all parties. Today’s world of the online web has provided new opportunities for both the creators and the consumers of media such as music. The digital aspect of the web allows for wonderful innovations such as MP3 players but ethical personal use must…

    • 729 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Advancements in today's technology have allowed users to access and use computer programs, movies, music and other multimedia for which they have not purchased. Technological advancements are coming along at such a quick pace that the enforcement of copyright laws cannot keep pace. Music piracy exploded in the late 1990's and caused groups such as the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) to crack down on companies such as Napster that provided that provided free music downloads. The number of lawsuits against individuals who illegally download music has escalated to the point that people are now switching to legal internet sites that sell music downloads. The ethicality of this issue has touched many people throughout the world…

    • 2646 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Cis 324 Computer Ethics

    • 2262 Words
    • 10 Pages

    In the short time that computers and internet have existed in the modern era, the world has seen a complete 360 degree turn and in the various forms of electronic entertainment that people all over the world are now using. In the days before CD’s, DVD’s and the internet, not much was said if a vinyl album (remember these?), VHS cassette (or these?) or an audio cassette was loaned to a friend for their listening / viewing pleasure, but today with the availability of sending an email with three or four megabytes (mb) of information, one can enjoy a borrowed song but is assumed that it is piracy or stealing. Is this a fair assumption? This Author will not give his opinion but rather discuss both sides of the Peer to Peer (P2P) downloading and sharing issues and let the reader form their own opinions.…

    • 2262 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Steal This Mp3

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages

    With so many Internet users currently sharing music, The Recording Industry Association of America considers downloading music from websites stealing. Yet people who are downloading mp3 for free think it’s not because they are downloading shared copies of mp3’s. Companies like Sony sell computers with ripping and burning capabilities, MP3 players, and other devices that gain much of their appeal from music sharing. So what is theft? Treating customers like thieves is a certain recipe for failure.…

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The music recording industry is in trouble. For several years now, sales of new and popular music have steadily declined and show no sign of changing. The record companies are quick to blame the growing popularity of the Internet; music is being traded in a digital form online, often anonymously, with the use of file-sharing programs such as Morpheus, KaZaA, and Imesh, to name a few. The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) succeeded in disbanding the pioneer Internet file-sharing program, Napster, but is facing confrontation with similar programs that are escaping American copyright laws. While there is an obvious connection between declining popular music sales and increasing file sharing, there is more going on than the RIAA wants to admit. I will show that the recording companies are overpricing their products, and not sufficiently using the Internet as an opportunity to market and sell their products. I shall begin by describing in greater detail the problem that the recording companies are facing, as well as the growing epidemic of online music trading. From there, I will show the correlation between the two and describe the other factors affecting record sales, and how these trends could be turned around to help the industry.…

    • 5602 Words
    • 23 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Up on Downloading

    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Elaine McArdle said, “The music industry is struggling with a full blown crisis”. What could possibly be pushing the music industry into a crisis one might ask, illegally downloading free music. In the essay, Up on Downloading, three Harvard Law School professors are trying to come up with different solutions to this problem that is occurring. Now that our technology has become so advanced, many people are figuring out ways to cheat the system, and when people are not paying for the music they have downloaded, the artist is not getting paid. Artists are not the only one losing money but everyone involved producing the music is losing money as well. There is also less and less people going out and buying CD’s. I could probably not even remember the last time I purchased a CD. So how are the artists and producers suppose to make money when we are stealing from them? Zittrain, Nesson, and Fisher believe they could possibly have the solution to save the music industry.…

    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Ruben on Piracy

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In “ In Defense of Piracy(Well, Some Piracy)”, Matthew Ruben states that it is alright to download mp3 in certain circumstances. He reasons firstly that the current marketing strategies of music are making people paying for albums they would not enjoy. He also reasons that between a dilemma of paying unreasonable price for a single and downloading, there is nothing ethically wrong to download than buying a whole CD just for a track. Thus, he reckons that pirating mp3 single can be a form of protest to the music industry on resisting hype. Though these reasons seem attractive, especially to the general public, Ruben has not taken into account of the devastating effects of piracy has on to the music industry and that piracy is flat, adulterated theft (Gary Locke, 2010).…

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The process of being cool

    • 708 Words
    • 2 Pages

    People, who produce this music online, put in excess amounts of energy, time, and money while getting nothing in return. In source 4, the artist asks, “do you think about the days, weeks, months- maybe even years- that we have to put into writing, practicing, recording, mixing, and distributing that song?” The frustrations of being taken advantage of are evident in this source. Artists want to share their music but cannot be giving it away for free. This is their living and it would be impossible for them to make any profit if everyone is just took part in online piracy. When people participate in online piracy, they are stealing work that has taken many hours and much money to produce.…

    • 708 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    According to the RIAA, 95% of all music downloads of 2008 were illegal. Since then, the amount of illegal downloads have escalated. Although many people consider this as a minor crime, it is stealing, which is serious no matter how it is done. As this trend is becoming more and more popular, people are losing money, jobs, and victims can be fined high amounts of money. Internet officials cannot punish every person involved in the crime, so most assume that nothing will happen to them, or it won’t affect anyone. These persecutors are wrong, and this crime is serious and unacceptable.…

    • 299 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Music piracy is mostly committed by people who are everyday people who have average income jobs and have families who end up being sued by big record companies over downloading music for free. It seems a bit to greedy when you look at the difference in pay between the artist and the people who download the songs. ( …) say that the people who pirate the music are more likely to go to the show and buy the albums after downloading music (Ernesto). Also, people who pirate music tracks are very likely to develop an connection to the bands orartists and that will lead to them attending the shows, buying albums and merchandise.When putting this issue in perspective, record companies are just looking for money without any consideration for the ways of getting it.…

    • 1268 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Music Piracy

    • 2100 Words
    • 9 Pages

    How do you know you are not a thief? Downloading free music from the internet without permission from the copyright holder constitutes stealing. In the last six years record sales have dropped and illegal downloads have increased significantly. There are two different organizations that are actively participating in the solution to this problem. There are people in the music industry who stand on both sides of the fence. Some say that downloading music without permission is against the law, harmful to the industry and must be stopped, while others believe there is a way to legalize downloads by compensating the copyright holders through indirect payment plans. The Recording Industry Association of America is leading an effort to stop illegal production and distribution of sound recordings through the use of education, enforcement, and litigation. The Electronic Freedom Foundation supports the legalization of shared music over the internet and proposes many solutions to this problem, the strongest of which is voluntary collective licensing. A final solution to this problem is a concept of "free music" to its audience while still getting artists and those involved in recording their music compensated. The internet has made it easy to share music files and illegal file traders have not been receptive to change their ways. Artists can use the marketing power of their "free music" on the internet alone to sell the products that have always compensated them the most, concert tickets and merchandise.…

    • 2100 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Music Decline

    • 540 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Although the Internet is a friend when downloading music legitimately, and foe when illegally, exposure is usually beneficial for any artist. To offset possible piracy profit losses, musicians have learned to expand revenue streams. Licensing deals with companies, copyright contracts and usage fees from FM radio and TV advancements, as well as from playing their music in public venues are now all possible revenue sources. Capitalizing on more grandiose concerts focusing on showmanship has proven one of the most successful revenue means as concert tickets are sold at premium prices to devoted fans. Capturing a greater percentage share in concert sales, as well as through merchandise and memorabilia offerings, is also proving profitable. Lastly, royalties and publishing continue to prove to still be profitable. All this results now in the “real music” to the artists and industry moguls’ ears- the sound of cash dollars.…

    • 540 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Online Piracy

    • 616 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Twitter, Facebook, Google, Wikipedia and many other sites are some of the most common ways people communicate and use as a leg for viral services. Two laws that are being placed into effect will serve as a hinder to users of the internet and also to many of the websites. If they were to be censored or “taken away” people would be left dangling wondering what next. I will inform my audience about the laws (SOPA AND PIPA), how it will censor sites, which sites may be affected, what sites did to prevent it, and when were they introduced. Also how censorship may cause some sites to shut down completely. The two laws will cause them to lose their viral services, no longer being able to inform users with information.…

    • 616 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    We believe that even though downloading free music from the internet might not be right in the eyes of the artist that as a consumer we still find ways to support the artist. We pay for their shirts, hats and concert tickets. Plus there are still people out there who do buy their music. If music fans everywhere decided to start downloading from the internet I am sure that the music companies would find some way to make the consumer pay for it. Yes, they are losing a lot of money from the millions of people who download music, but they still make millions with their concerts and possibility of being able to lend music to a commercial. Plus there is always a good chance that people download songs of artists they have never heard before, if they like what they hear they become a fan and the artist makes more money from future purchases from that individual. If you look at the music industry itself the artists are split on the idea of free music on the internet. You find that those who love music for the sake of music don’t mind people downloading their songs from the internet and in fact have put their songs on their website for free. Where as the ones who only got into the business for the money are the ones complaining. Granted they have a right to complain, but seriously how much money do you…

    • 251 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Illegal Music Downloading

    • 417 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Have you downloaded anything from an Internet? The Internet which is widely used by every generation all over the world brings them various vital roles. For instance, we can easily download music from the Internet. All you have to do is click the bottom a few times. Who could predict like the evolution decades ago? However, nowadays, anyone has uploaded music, which we are able to download for free. Illegal music downloading is free and convenient that leads to the effect on the benefit of record companies and our society.…

    • 417 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays