Music Sharing Research Paper

When I was in middle school, the biggest way to get music for free was a website named Limewire. Nothing was more exciting than to be able to hear a song on the radio then go home and download it to our desktops. Also cool, was the fact that if one of us didn’t have a song, our friend could simply “burn” it onto a c.d. for us. That was the only way we knew how to get music, aside from going out and buying the whole album. Apple’s iTunes was just starting out and iPods were just being created. Limewire was the way to go. Little did we know that Limewire was illegal and costing singers, songwriters, labels, and everyone associated with just one song, huge amounts of money.

One of the ethical implications to consider when engaging in actions that violate the DMCA is that the industry could be losing money due to some of their products being distributed for free on the world wide web, also they could be spending a lot of money in setting up online piracy-detecting software to prevent these illegal activities from happening. Every person who illegally downloads copies of online content is costing these industries monetary losses. These contents are not just “free for all,” DMCA violations hurt people who are involved in the making of these contents such as the entertainment, media, journalism and publishing industries.

control people from stealing music on the Internet. File sharing and Digital Media make downloading music illegally more widespread. Artists, along with many other people in the music industry lose money due to illegal downloading of music. With websites whose purpose is to share free downloadable music, who would want to pay about a dollar per song to buy music through Itunes? Not only is downloading free music on the Internet easy, it is also very hard to get in trouble for it.

B. Relevance: The Internet has changed the way we all live. It is at our disposal with many advantages and some disadvantages, piracy being one of them. The Stop Online Piracy Act,

had touched on how people are making a hobby of illegally downloading music. I found an article by Amy Adkins titled How Does Illegally Downloading Music Impact the Music Industry. She touches on a few subjects of how illegally downloading music directly affects the music industry. She opens up the article stating that 30 billion songs were illegally downloaded between 2004 and 2009 which is a staggering statistic. Napster came out in 1999 and was a free file sharing website where people were getting music illegally. The music industry has loss $12.5 billion due to the availability of free music. Some people have been taken to court for being found downloading illegally. In her article Adkins reveals that due to the illegal downloading of music

Some problems have been brought up with the DMCA, and some of its uses have been ethically questionable. The DMCA does not allow people to publish the source code to circumvention devices, and this could constitute violating their first amendment rights. Another issue is that ISPs are very weary about hosting copyrighted material, and therefore take down any content that is requested whether it really should be or not. This could violate the privacy of internet users. The DMCA has managed to prevent free expression and research. For example, Professor Felten and his students from Princeton were prohibited from giving a presentation on the insecurities of the digital watermarks used in protecting digital music. Fair use has also been

The question then became “Just because we can get the music we want without paying for it, should we?” (Tyson, 2000, p.1). This issue of illegal downloads, which is also referred to as piracy, has been a hot topic ever since the introduction of Napster. According to Recording Industry Association of America “In the decade since peer-to-peer (p2p) file-sharing site Napster emerged in 1999, music sales in the U.S. have dropped 47 percent, from $14.6 billion to $7.7 billion” (RIAA, 2014).

“Before the days of YouTube and the Internet, a band 's chances of striking it big depended on record companies. If a band was lucky enough to get a record deal, it gained access to a label 's vast resources and connections. The company paid for the band 's studio time, … and got its music played on the radio, reaching millions of record buying Americans” (Majerol, 1). Now, anyone with talent can post a video of themselves and become an internet sensation, only to then receive a deal with a label to continue growing their career. The issue is, with the Internet came digital downloading, and with the growing popularity of digital downloading came illegal downloading, known as Digital Piracy, which has affected the music industry greatly. This issue affects everyone involved in the Music Industry. From the small CD store owner to the Artist on stage, everyone has and continues to be affected by the growing popularity of digital downloading services. Artists, producers, and songwriters lose an estimated 12.5 Billion USD every year to illegal digital music services. Further, the economic impact from [digital downloading] is an estimated loss of 2+ Billion USD (Storrs, 1). This money affects the “little guys” in the industry and the average worker within the industry.

In 1999 people started to use this file sharing system to illegally down music. In this next chapter the author will look at a range of technologies and programs that that were used which had a major effect on the music industry. By doing this it is hoped that one will be able to understand if new online streaming services have helped the music industry to deter people from illegal downloading music. Also with the introduction of online streaming have people’s attitudes changed towards illegal downloading or do they still download music illegally. From this the author will look at new age technologies.

Looking at the main headlines for downloading that originate from the RIAA, it can be noticed that the word “illegal” is replaced by “unauthorized”. This is because the courts state that the word “illegal” is considered to be a false statement when making reference to downloading music. When the topic is brought to discussion, two typical responses are shouted from the opposing sides.

This essay discusses the usefulness of the Digital Economy Act (the 2010 Act) in preventing infringement of copyright. The essay will start off discussing the provisions which imposed ISPs to stop individuals from infringing copyright. Followed by analysing the 2010 Act which caused widespread controversy and outrage in the United Kingdom. Moreover, my intention is to ascertain whether it has been effective since its implementation. Also, I will briefly outline the key provisions relating to infringement of copyright. I will consequently restrict comments to some copyright-related issues, concentrating on peer-to-peer file sharing over the Internet. Thirdly, practical examples will be given to evaluate the DEA. Using legislation, case law and journal articles I will present my findings.

The "business side of music is struggling to generate enough revenue because of the new technology" ("How the Internet Changed Music."). "Most of the people who are part of making a record are paid in royalties, and anytime music changes hands without money being involved, those royalties can’t be paid—which is why so much has been done in recent years to try and reduce music piracy"("How The Internet Changed Music."). iTunes and Amazon has helped by offering cheap downloads for single songs, which allows the customer to only purchase songs they like rather than the entire album ("How the Internet Changed Music."). Spotify and Pandora, who offer either ad-based or paid subscription streaming of their music libraries, are Internet radio stations which have also helped with the piracy problem ("How The Internet Changed

The internet is seeing a new model against piracy forcing some artists to opt out of electronic sales. The government laws have made music very freely available but most artists are suggesting the government will go over these laws again to bring music back to the level of importance that it is.

Companies like Apple, have decided that it is best to get in with the downloading business. However, an end to the illegal downloading conflict remains to be realized. The RIAA and associated artists continue to wage war against illegal downloaders while computer savvy audiences persist in sharing music files online every day. While it is undoubtedly true that downloading music is a crime, it remains to be proven that it is wrong. Without establishing this principle, most downloader's are likely to continue the activity. Even with new, inexpensive and available means of downloading files, they can still be shared for free online. The rift must be repaired between music lovers who feel that they have been taken advantage of in the past and recording companies and artists who worry about their future livelihood.

Since 2003 the RIAA has aggressively pursued music pirates on the internet who have committed a "substantial" amount of illegal downloading. They have won hundreds of