It's Time To Deprive The Music Industry

Though some would argue that downloading music for free is immoral and illegal, free music downloads do not appear to deprive the music industry of any money or limit marketing. Statistics, in fact, show quite the opposite on both fronts claiming time and time again that they have done nothing but boost sales. Vanessa stated that, “artists barely have enough to support themselves” (Herrera). This is a difficult statement to accept as true because it means that artists who are so dearly loved by their fans are not treated accordingly. If artists truly lack sufficient incomes to support themselves, then the only plausible solution is to stop making music. Nipping at Napster invalidates her claim in paragraph seven stating, “the cost of production

Another point made by the opposing side was, “artists do not get credit, and free music takes away marketing opportunities” (Valdez). Right away, it is easy to tell that this statement is nothing more than the music industry grasping at straws. It is common knowledge that downloading music online does nothing but credit the artist, otherwise, how would the artists be receiving the exposure that the industry so vehemently denies is helping them. If these claims held a significant amount of truth to them, then labels would have targeted any and all music outlets that weren’t affiliated with them. Janis Ian shuts down the previous statement saying, “most people download music to hear new music, and to find old out-of-print pusic, not to avoid paying.” When consumers made the switch from records to CD’s and DVD’s, scores of songs got lost in the transition. By having the records of the lost music online, consumers find previously unaccessible songs. These same recovered songs as well as the discovery of new genres and experimentation are why streaming is popular and here to stay. Not because streaming is cheaper, but because it offers so much