Views on illegal downloading?

Hey,

It seems illegal downloading is at the point where you can find anything, download full albums in the time it takes to listen to one song and doesn't look like its going to stop.

My view on the topic is I KNOW it is stealing but still do it, If I download an album that is good not just one or two good songs and the rest fillers I will buy it no problem. I feel this way because I found myself buying heaps of albums most of which I'd listen to once or twice then never see it again. This becomes even more of a problem if you go to troubles to track down a CD you have heard good things about then after hours of hunting turns out to be utter crap.

So I was just wondering what everyones view on illegal downloading(Via torrents and etc) are?

PS- Last album I bought was Dream Theaters Systematic Chaos, strangely the only "bad" song on it was constant motion, no idea why they made a video clip for that song.

Thanks

I download music and I pay a yearly fee to do it; but the music industry is doing everything they can to stop it because it's money they feel they should be getting.
In my case most of the songs are no longer being recorded except by Time-Life, etc for $200 or more for a set and I don't care for atleast half of the songs.
I feel the ones who deserve to make money from the music and lyrics aren't getting their fair share; if the artists and songwriters were making a bundle out of their work I wouldn't mind but the corporations are the ones getting the big bucks.
The industry has now blocked the downloading of sheet music from most of the net because they aren't getting money out of it? What's next?

Keep pickin and grinnin
Sweet Pea

Being as I like to be paid for my work, I play fair and pay for other people's. I only ever download tracks that I can't find in stores or on the online download stores... old stuff...

Video games the same. I download very old stuff that you can't buy... but that's it.

The music industry stole from us for so many years, I don't see a damn thing wrong with downloading. I mean, $15-$18 for a cd, cmon! For the most part they're keeping it to $10-$12 new, but you can bu anything older than 2 weeks or your paying way too much. Its not about stopping p2p IMO, its dropping sale price. I think its rediculous that iTunes charges 99c for a 128 kbps rip with DRM... and extra if you want a 256 rip thats DRM free. If I'm paying $10 for a digital copy, I would want it lossless.

I am though, all about supporting the bands. I usually buy their cd at shows, that way they get 100% of the money.

I want to pay the band for their work not the record company

Originally Posted by: DAMAGED ONEI want to pay the band for their work not the record company

Very good point. I TRY to buy Cd's released by smaller bands of their site or myspace page.

[The industry has now blocked the downloading of sheet music from most of the net because they aren't getting money out of it? What's next?

Keep pickin and grinnin
Sweet Pea[/QUOTE]


Those that may not know the Olga is back...

http://www.harmony-central.com/Guitar/OLGA/all/A.html

I don't care enough to pay so I steal. That's just the way it is. I think its wrong though, but I have no soul. :)

Originally Posted by: iihollyI don't care enough to pay so I steal. That's just the way it is. I think its wrong though, but I have no soul. :)

Damn Girl :eek:

Originally Posted by: sailorjim[The industry has now blocked the downloading of sheet music from most of the net because they aren't getting money out of it? What's next?

Lyrics will cost you too!

It's an easy way to destroy your system eventually, if you're not careful. There are so many hacked up files spawning through this method and I wouldn't put it past the Record Companies or their affiliates being behind it to some extent (including some of the worthless anti-virus software being advertised for prevention) .
Stop spreading the disease.............

Those corrupt files are from downloading using Limewire, Ares and such. Which, if you use them to d/l things, you deserve the virus.

Originally Posted by: elklanderccThose corrupt files are from downloading using Limewire, Ares and such. Which, if you use them to d/l things, you deserve the virus.

10/4 Good Buddy :p

Where do you guys download free mp3's from?
I use mp3raid.com
it's not the best, but it'll do!

Please don't post links/URLs to help people with illegal downloads.... We don't need to advertise them.

Yeah, I pretty much just download songs that are from rare albums and stuff. I also download a couple songs off the same album to see if it's gonna be any good. If it is, I delete what I downloaded, buy the album, and rip it to my playlist.

Rant warning, unpopular views ahead:

Besides illegal downloads being 'illegal' they are immoral. At the end of the day it's the bands that gets hurt - bands are people, record labels are corporations (business entities whose sole concern is the value of their stock and the profits they can generate for their shareholders). Business and/or corporations are not bad, they are a fact of life (albeit a necessary evil in some cases!). Without trade we would not be lucky enough to be living in a democratic capitalist societies. People forget that the bands that they like are the ones who get zero every time an illegal download is made. No cd sales or paid downloads = no bands.
Take Metallica for instance, everyone comes down on them because they stood up to napster. Wouldn't you if you had just invested the last 15 years of your career to becoming the biggest rock band in the world followed by about a year of sitting in a smelly studio creating your biggest album only to realise that someone stole it and made an unlimited number of copies available to everyone in the world with a computer.... for FREE??! If that was you, you'd be pretty pissed with Napster too... at least I would.
Big bands have BIG overheads and even BIGGER pressures put on them by the record labels to make incremental returns on investment (eg. $20M invested to record and promote the Black album = a minimum $100M contractual return for the record company).
I personally just buy cd's or mp3's from bands own websites (unless they are cheaper on amazon). You can't really expect anyone else to treat you fairly if you steal stuff.
Just my humble opinion :-)

I'm on the same page. I won't download music. It's just not fair to the artists (unless they put it out there to be downloaded). To me, it's like stealing a book from the bookstore. Aside from sticking it to the bookstore, you're screwing over the writer. I don't know the right answer but that's my thought.

In my case, I'd say the record industry is doing better BECAUSE I can download. I would've never heard pretty much anything that I listen to today without illegal downloading. If I like a band, I support them by buying at least one album. Many times one turns into multiple.

I honestly can say I owe a lot to being able to download music. I believe hearing the music I have today has changed my life, and I never would've spent money on the music if I couldn't have had a feel for it in the first place. I will now. But only because I've grown musically and have heard many names via the internet.

All that being said, do I think its right? No. But I do it anyways.

Originally Posted by: hunter60I'm on the same page. I won't download music. It's just not fair to the artists (unless they put it out there to be downloaded). To me, it's like stealing a book from the bookstore. Aside from sticking it to the bookstore, you're screwing over the writer. I don't know the right answer but that's my thought.

I feel/felt the same way, especially because I write music, and I know I'd be furious if it was downloaded illegally, but on the other hand, I recently read an article that showed how the sales are still to this day, the same, and/or better than they ever have been. So, yeah, kinda strange philosophy on my part, but heck, they're still making their millions. And to agree w/ Grizzly, I have honestly bought more cd's due to new bands I've found from downlaods or internet radio than anything else. My CD collection isn't huge, but point being, I've bought way more thanks to the free/illegal stuff. :cool: