Is EMI dropping the RIAA

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Music:- The inevitable self-generated collapse of the corporate music industry as it exists today has been presaged by startling news from a member of the Big 4 organized music cartel.

EMI, these days under the control of private equity group Terra Firma, was the first to abandon DRM.
It now looks as if it may also be the first to opt out of subsidising Big 4 organised music hit squads such as the RIAA and IFPI.

EMI, “wants to cut its funding to the industry’s trade bodies, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters on Wednesday, which could deal a blow to the fight against music piracy,” says Reuters.


“The source said EMI … was looking at ways to ’substantially’ reduce the amount it pays trade groups,” says the story, going on:

The groups, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and other national associations, represent music companies and the fight against illegal piracy.

They receive funding from the four major music groups - EMI, Warner, Sony BMG and Universal - and hundreds of small independent labels.

The story fails to mention many of the ’small independent labels’ are either directly or indirectly owned by one or other of the Big 4, or directly or indirectly associated with, and/or controlled by, them.

To all intents and purposes, the Big 4 together and singly comprise the corporate music industry and own and operate the IFPI and all the other so-called ‘trade’ organisations which are decimating the corporate music consumer bases with spurious lawsuits and accusations that the men, women and children which keep them fat are nothing more than thieves and criminals.

Troubles the big four labels are experiencing are entirely of their own making.

Shackled by fear and ignorance, they’ve steadfastly refused to have anything to do with P2P technology, file sharing or any of the other distribution techniques which are emerging in the digital 21st century, and which would have put them in effective control of the corporate online music scene.
Instead, the vast bulk of online music lovers get their fixes from the free P2P networks and the growing numbers of sites being put up by musicians themselves and independent entrepreneurs.


Doug Morris, one of the people who calls the shots in Universal, the biggest of the Big 4, admitted in an interview:

There’s no one in the record industry that’s a technologist. That’s a misconception writers make all the time, that the record industry missed this. They didn’t. They just didn’t know what to do. It’s like if you were suddenly asked to operate on your dog to remove his kidney. What would you do?

Meanwhile, “The IFPI said it believed the four majors give approximately 64 million pounds ($132.1 million) each year to itself, the RIAA and many other national associations,” says the story.

:source: Source: http://www.p2pnet.net/story/14152

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One of the quotes that really got to me, was an industry insider that said...

"Doug Morris, one of the people who calls the shots in Universal, the biggest of the Big 4, admitted in an interview:

There’s no one in the record industry that’s a technologist. That’s a misconception writers make all the time, that the record industry missed this. They didn’t. They just didn’t know what to do. It’s like if you were suddenly asked to operate on your dog to remove his kidney. What would you do?"

To which I responded...

I would have the GOOD SENSE to go to a vet and have THEM work on my dog! That is what I would do.

Not try to “fix” the problem myself as the music industry has tried by suing it’s customers! There was simply no excuse for that and it is apparent in spades now.

They made their own problems….Napster could have been a great way of the music industry and customers coming together….but greed got in the way and now they are paying a price for it.

I am glad that at least one major label is seeing the light. Now if the others would follow suit……


So what do you think? Is the music industry finally collapsing under it's own bloated weight?

This would seem as a severe blow to the RIAA and IFPI. One of the big 4 deciding to drop out gives a strong indication, that they aren't handling things right.

LONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - British music industry major EMI wants to cut its funding to the industry's trade bodies, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters on Wednesday, which could deal a blow to the fight against music piracy.
The source said EMI, which was recently taken over by private equity group Terra Firma, was looking at ways to "substantially" reduce the amount it pays trade groups.
The groups, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and other national associations, represent music companies and the fight against illegal piracy.
They receive funding from the four major music groups -- EMI, Warner (WMG.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Sony BMG and Universal -- and hundreds of small independent labels.
The IFPI said it believed the four majors give approximately 64 million pounds ($132.1 million) each year to itself, the RIAA and many other national associations....


Read more on the Reuters news page:


:source: Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/techn...34755220071128

Quote:

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Originally Posted by webe123

There’s no one in the record industry that’s a technologist. That’s a misconception writers make all the time, that the record industry missed this. They didn’t. They just didn’t know what to do. It’s like if you were suddenly asked to operate on your dog to remove his kidney. What would you do?

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:lol: we are fighting for our private freedom against dumbasses!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by webe123

They made their own problems….Napster could have been a great way of the music industry and customers coming together….but greed got in the way and now they are paying a price for it.

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"You have been called greedy for the magnificence of your power to create wealth" (Atlas Shrugged, 421). Do not scorn them for being greedy, as if it is immoral. Do not assume moral supremacy because you are not. They see filesharing as a threat to their well-being. If you were in their position, you would do the same; any rational man with his own self-interest and happiness as his purpose would do the same...
They are only "paying a price for it" because their attempts at stopping filesharing have failed. The EMI does not see the funds as a promising investment. Should they have shown success, the EMI would surely still support them. EMI is being rational.
Don't you understand that if the recording industries and the international organizations supporting them 'recognize' Napster as "a great way of the music industry and customers coming together", their existence would not be neccessary. The only reason musicians sell-out to these industries is for the industries to distribute their music via, but not limited to, CDs. The musicians can upload their music onto music-sharing databases like torrent trackers just as easily as a recording industry could. I really don't want to assume why you would think Napster and the like are "great ways of ... coming together", so I will not go farther.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by webe123

I am glad that at least one major label is seeing the light. Now if the others would follow suit……

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What light? Their own demise? How can you justify yourself in claiming that the forced destruction of a perfectly legitimate corporation, in regard to intellectual property and distribution rights, by indifferent filesharers is moral? Please, I would like to see you try.[/quote]

Quote:

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Originally Posted by webe123

So what do you think? Is the music industry finally collapsing under it's own bloated weight?

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If by "bloated weight", you mean the incredible amount of wealth their business is producing, then no, they are not. This is not karma in action. The immorality of getting too much money legitimately, which is one of your false premises, is not coming back to bite them in the ass.

I think this article just describes a normal business decision, and the possible future of more like it. The only thing really learned from this article, at least by me, is that the attempts at stopping filesharing by the recording industries are failing miserably, as indicated by their loss in funds.

It sure does look like this is a sign of things to come to the record industry. When big company usually cut something in there budget that means to me that things are not going well as planed. Or maybe it was EMI getting wise burning off some leaches and investing the money in technology, in a last ditch effort, in something like napster that would ultimetly pay off for them. It's hard to say right now but I would say this move is forecasting a collapse.

This sounds to good to be true.

Too good to be true, especially when you see what they are trying to do in France

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6...ml?tag=nl.e550

This could be the end of file sharing ! !

Lets face it, you all say the record companies are too greedy and did not embrace Napster etc. But you can buy music legally from Itunes etc but people still download. And I think they would even if songs were say 10 cents each legally.

Regards

Digby

Profit and loss...

It's no good fighting piracy with cash, if the cash you spend is more than the money you theoretically lose through piracy (it is proving extremely difficult for the industry to quantify how much money they are losing, simply because no one knows how much piracy is actually going on).

I think that EMI have probably decided that piracy is not going to go away, so their investment to fight it is a literal waste of money. After all, why spend money trying to stop something that cannot be stopped. Only a government department would be so stupid.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by digmen1

Too good to be true, especially when you see what they are trying to do in France

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6...ml?tag=nl.e550

This could be the end of file sharing ! !

Lets face it, you all say the record companies are too greedy and did not embrace Napster etc. But you can buy music legally from Itunes etc but people still download. And I think they would even if songs were say 10 cents each legally.

Regards

Digby

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Broken link. I wonder what they are trying to do. :unsure:

I think this is the story that digmen1 was referring to:
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6219944.html


This news about EMI is very exciting; I'd love to see further updates on this. If true, the record industry as we know it might finally begin to change their ways.
But I doubt it.

Thanks for that new link Mollusk.

I don't know what happened to mine ....

Regards

Digby

Quote:

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Originally Posted by digmen1

Too good to be true, especially when you see what they are trying to do in France

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6...ml?tag=nl.e550

This could be the end of file sharing ! !

Lets face it, you all say the record companies are too greedy and did not embrace Napster etc. But you can buy music legally from Itunes etc but people still download. And I think they would even if songs were say 10 cents each legally.

Regards

Digby

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Digby, I think you hit it bang on, I for one would never go to EMItorrents.com (and pay) over oink.cd (RIP) but I don't think that is the point anymore. The record companies missed the boat on file sharing as a valid and inexpensive distribution method. It has become very clear that when something like P2P comes along its all about being in the right place at the right time to take advantage of it. At this point the record companies need to figure out new ways to be innovative, they've been forced into the fast paced world of information technologies whether they like it or not. They have to being lazy bastards relying on decades old processes and technology.

One thing is for sure, music will always be a lucrative business because of people's love for it will never die. However, the method in which you can make a dime, that *HAS* to change. They need to realize that technology will reach a point (if it hasn't already) where artists won't need to go to LA and rent a $500,000 studio for $2500 bucks a day to produce high level quality music. They need to realize that the artist will no longer require them for exposure and publicity (look at sites like myspace.com). Technology gets cheaper, it gets better, faster, more reliable. I really believe that is the point that the music industry fails to see.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Aaxel21

It sure does look like this is a sign of things to come to the record industry. When big company usually cut something in there budget that means to me that things are not going well as planed. Or maybe it was EMI getting wise burning off some leaches and investing the money in technology, in a last ditch effort, in something like napster that would ultimetly pay off for them. It's hard to say right now but I would say this move is forecasting a collapse.

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Yes it is. The music industry as we know it today is dying. Artistic control and creativity is needed in order to restore the music industry.