Here's an apt characterization of the RIAA's determination to kill off its developing client base:

"Too many Americans think 'profit' is a bad thing. The pharmaceutical industry is struggling with this, too, but they haven't responded by saying they will poison their customers."

The RIAA's sue 'em all tactics probably have more to do with the labels' desperate attempts to survive in an era they can neither understand nor come to grips with than 'profit'. But the quote, from Wrong Language, Wrong Lesson by Merrie Spaeth, ex-director of media relations for president Ronald Reagan, nonetheless serves.

Spaeth now runs a Dallas consulting firm and in a United Press International, "The music industry is bent on self-destruction," she says, going on, "The RIAA is trying to use legal tactics to combat a change in the industry's basic business model - a change which they saw coming and arrogantly ignored. This sea of change was enabled not only by technology, but by a similar seismic change in values - a change the RIAA also had a hand in creating."

She also says, "Rather than deal with customer satisfaction issues, the industry chose to say, 'We don't care,' but in language closer to what rappers would use. Rather than deal with the fact that customer behavior had changed and technology had empowered them, the industry took out its wrath on Napster. If ever there is an example of winning a battle but losing the war, it's the industry's successful battle to kill Napster. Their legal and PR advisors should be fired. What would happen was all too clear."

Are you listening Hilary and Cary-Sue?

Profit is a bad thing if it is done at the expense of the health, lives, or rights of American citizens.
~code

Profit is a bad thing if it is done at the expense of the health, lives, or rights of American citizens.
~code

I couldn't agree more. When the mp3 format first grew in popularity the now defunct Diamond Multimedia began selling personal mp3 players...
How did the RIAA respond? Instead of jumping on the technological bandwagon, and supporting mp3 wholeheartedly, they did the same thing they've always done when a new format emerges - tried to stop it dead in its tracks. Needless to say, the RIAA tried to sue Diamond MM in an attempt to get them to stop selling mp3 players. (Thankfully, the RIAA got laughed out of court on that one),
The same thing is true with p2p. Back in late 1998 - early 1999, when napster was still in its infancy, the RIAA should have changed it's business model, right then and there.
Napster's rise was, imho, undoubtedly the sign of changing times. The RIAA had two possible paths to take - implement a new business model to acknowledge (and benefit from) the so-called "digital music revolution" that napster and its ilk were spearheading, or attempt the impossible - deny their consumers' desire for said new business model, and fight the immerging technology because they didn't come up with it first.
Truthfully, just another bad marketing decision in the history of the RIAA's bad marketing decisions.
The RIAA is, and always has been, slow to change, and this will undoubtedly be their undoing...

Yup. You might find this interesting, but I was in a movie theater the other night and before the actual previews came up, some guy who works behind the scenes at a movie was talking about how much he likes movies and how we, as Americans, should not take away his job by pirating movies and songs. After the guy stopped talking, just about the entire audience was arguing with the tv screen! I thought it was great. Keep up the good work!

Tip of the hat,
Captain C

if anyone runs peerguardian, and visits congress.org and posts a letter and then gets hit from RIAA related IP addresses, please do a copy/paste into notepad or other simple text program and post it...please!
cool...
out
~code

NewJohn..I ran across a new article about the Riaa this morning, check this link:
http://news.com.com/2010-1026_3-5059408.html
It is written by Declan McCullagh for CNet News.com, Aug 4, 2003, titled, "The Future Of A Scare Campaign."
Quoting from the article, Mr McCullagh
"Probably the most important argument is one that could hit the RIAA where it hurts the most: in the pocketbook. SBC argues that it and other Internet service providers "must be compensated for the substantial costs incurred in complying with these subpoenas" and cites rule 45 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. It says the recipient of a subponea must be "reasonably compensated" for the work required to prepare a response."
Makes for real good reading. Check it out.

ARE YOU REGISTERED AND READY?

...besides, the Riaa is not REALLY trying to stop file-sharing, they are trying to eliminate the new competetition. And, btw, Code, profit at the expense of ANYONE's health,lives,rights, and well-being is morally wrong.

Some great post from users on this article.

Couldn't agree more.

Hail Mp3!!!

KILL DMCA
KILL DMCA
KEEP SAYING BS WHEN THE ANTI-PIRACY ADS COME UP...

Well. I think it's funny what is happening to the big pharmaceutical companies! They, like the RIAA have priced their products too high for people to get needed medicines. They are actually worse than the RIAA because they can influence life and death.

They have infiltrated the medical offices of our doctors by lulling them with incentives and samples to push their expensive new products. If they had their way. THey would have product reps sitting in on our doctor visits.

They also are behind those stupid commercials for drugs that we are bombarded with showing people running through fields of flowers. Just by the product. They appeal to everyone to see a doctor if you have "the symptoms", claiming to "educate the public". That is what a doctor is for. Not the media whose true intention is to sell sell sell.

If the American people as consumers must lose our jobs to global competition and policies that DO NOT PROTECT our jobs here in America, then by god I do not want to hear big corporate conglomerates whining when it bites them in the ass!

A renowned physician basically told everyone in a congressional televised hearing what I have just said. He was ashamed of his profession because he saw that doctors have been seduced by the pharmaceutical companies and now those same people who were the doctors "good buddies" are now trying to muscle into the doctors territory by going straight to you the patient, through your television.

In my opinion the pharmaceutical companies are the RIAA of the healthcare system.

The real problem here as I see it is corporate greed. Companies are only interested in the almighty dollar first and if it means selling out your jobs to the highest offshore bidder then thats what they will do. If it means passing legislation that allows them to invade your privacy in order to control the market. Well thats what they are going to do. Why, because the citizens don't matter anymore because the weight of our financial influence in government officials will drown out the cries of the people. Besides, the people don't know whats going on because they are too busy worrying how they are going to pay their bills.

We need to make time to get actively involved in government to combat this selling out of our country to corporations before it's too late.

No, I'm not an extreme nut. Just a concerned citizen observing some disturbing events.

Wotcha Jazz -

I saw the article and quoted from it in, 'Through the glass darkly' (http://news.dmusic.com/article/7347).

But thanks a lot. Really : ) It helps when people let me know about items of interest.

DMCA will be dead in the water as soon as it is challenged. It's grossly unconstitutional.

To change the subject a little, ELI LILLY Pharmacueticals have almost completely wiped out the world's supply of anumal insulin used by diabetics all over the world, and replaced it with their own brand of human DNA originated insulin,. Being in the EMS industry I personally have seen the devastating effects of this bottled piss. MAny more diabetics are dying, suffering needless strokes and related heart problems and have lost control of their disease, all so ELI LILLY can increase profits. The swedish saw this happening and iincreased their own production of animal insulin to take up the slack, but EL and it's mega lobby effectively blocked any imports of swedish insulin form coming in the country, no EL is throwing a pissing fit about the proposal to let Amercians buy Canadian drugs at a large discount. I am convinced that You and I are nothing but dog shit in the eyes of the Gov't and Mega Business. What can we do, all of us move to Canada?

most of them are drug dealers with a PhD. i have more respect for the drug dealer on the stret than i do for someof these quacks. i like to call them happy docs, you knwo the ones that distribute medicine to those seeking a good high, with a wink and a nod.

Heres the thing I don't get. Hasn't the RIAA ever heard "no honor among theives" if we are indeed stealing intellectual property they stole it first it isnt their property. The majority of profits should go to the person who supplied the talent. I wonder what they are teaching at business schools these days, scare tactics? its all very interesting...

They have infiltrated the medical offices of our doctors by lulling them with incentives and samples to push their expensive new products. If they had their way. THey would have product reps sitting in on our doctor visits.

OH its much worse than that. They intimidate and threaten to cut off doctors that don't toe the line or push what they want pushed. Even read an article in time mag on this where even though some drugs no longer worked because we've built up an immunity to them they push the doctors tyo sell them anyway rather than using something that will work.
At my doctors office they have three doctors any of which you can see well I called one day to make an appointment and asked for my doctor and was told he was no longer with them.

So I got one of the other doctors, when I went to see him as I was leaving I asked about the other doctor and was told he quit doing regular practice and hired on at a nuring home as he got tired or being told by the hospitals and pharmicutical companies what he could and couldn't do.

Also I found something interesting the hopital companies (like IHC) want you to go to thier clinics only, of coarse with this doctor leaving the main doctor that ran the clinic of coarse advertised for another doctor to take his place and had a couple interested and was told by IHC if he hired them they'd ban him from practicing in thier hospitals. Nice huh?

The RIAA is attempting to safeguard a way of life that has been comfortable for their clients for a long time. Their consumers are dynamic and so are their interests. I'm not saying that maintaining their previous lifestyle is all they're up to, but their clients will miss a huge opportunity to cater to their consumers if they fail to be dynamic as well. Profit isn't a bad thing because it's what allows us to grow, diversify, and invest into newer technologies. Unfortunately for the big 5, dynamic isn't in their dictionaries and their consumers will go elsewhere.

I am reading every bit of this! Yesireee!!!!!!!!

Slydder41 ...it's about "management" (I am getting to hate that friggin' word more every day). There is an old saying that: "If you can't measure it, you can't manage it." The fact that the people in charge of HMOs (for example) are obsessed to an unhealthy degree with metrics and cutting costs and making more bucks, is putting people's health and life at risk/ The HMO cares about MONEY, and how to avoid paying it out. From the doctor's side, when you get out of med school, you owe a sh*t load of money from student loans and you have to start generating money. Lots try to start a single doctor private practice, but find out soon they can't make it. They turn around and get in with an HMO or other big company as an employee, and then find they are being told to do things that go against all their training in proper treatment, proper diagnostics (such as being told its better not to order expensive testing) and which violates their ethical teachings. That is why you find a larger than would be expected turnover. And, it's not just HMOs. Any "managed care" group is going to pretty much be the same...money is on the top of the priority list, and the patient is squashed at the bottom.
In terms of the RIAA...it is really the same issues rehashed...Money and Control. They want to control you, what you have on your computer, what uses you are able to put your computer to, and they want you to buy their crappy music, even if only ONE song is worth listening to. Now, imagine a candy bar (for 15 bucks)that only one tenth of the bar tasted good, but the rest tasted like sh*t. I mean, even if that 1/10 was just delicious...how many people would buy it? Now, what if someone were able to magically copy just the 1/1o bit of that candy bar and provide it free to whoever wanted it..think that people would rather get a free copy of that 1/10 of the bar that tasted good than pay 15 bucks for a bar that 90 % tasted like sh*t?
oh well...the fight goes on...
~code

Another rip off we all buy... Prescription Glasses! My sister once worked making glasses for a living, now a days that's a $15/hr job, she could make 5 pairs an hour, a little above the required rate, the materials cost less then $10 per pair. Cost to make @$13/pair (not inc. shipping) cost to you @$150+! and thats just for the cheepies that welfare will pay for.
Milk, farmers get 74¢/gallon, you pay $2.69
Stainless steel double sink without faucets $29.95, garbage disposal $29.95 (same ad in today's paper)
Seems that idems that are (or we consiter) a necessity have a huge mark-up, while some fancy things dont cost as much as we might think.

Oh yeah vamp, everything is overpriced...its called america, its just we found a way around paying for entertainment. Food and medicine can't be downloaded

I work in optical too- your sister worked in a place that sells crap. Our quality specs do cost us about half what we charge for them. We also provide great warranties, service and we take all your whiny bullshit too. Places like the one you're talking about sell discontinued third-world-made garbage materials, especially to welfare clients. Their work is also shit. There is not one frame in our whole office that didn't cost us a bare minimum of 40 dollars. Those 40 dollar frames with a pair of lenses that cost us 30 dollars retails for 129 dollars including a 2 year warranty during which we always eat the cost of at least 1 pair of lenses which the client abuses and then demands to be replaced under warranty. Plus we end up adjusting them 20 times when they sit on them, sleep on them, run them over with the car, dog chews them up, they "spontaneously" bend themselves into crazy shapes etc. I guess what I'm trying to say is you're talking out of your ass.Sorry...

eh, my sister ended up marrying rich anyways. If you have a warrenty then I'd like a website link or some way to order (Im stuck in redneckville). But yes, she did work in a factory of sorts that supplied glasses nationwide and bragged of how cheep they were and how much they sold for. Im glad you work for someone who does better quality more honestly.
The milk prices are from last week (dairy farm in the family), the farmer pasturises and homozises the milk, all the factory does is ship it around and add vitamin D
A mellow of mine compared prices of things awhile ago to the prices now in percentages of minimum wage, cigarettes, beer, CDs, glasses, medicine, milk, bread, telephone services are all up, the price of Sports cars, diamonds, and other fancy things are down. Just sucks when Icing is cheeper then cake...
Arg, my frist post was messy from not enough coffee and now this one is messy from too much Jack....

Give the RIAA the miliraty edge...tommrow they might zap you from the space for downloading "illegal music" or send you a cruise missile instead if those crappy law documents for free uploading...

I saw the interview on TechTV w/ Hilary Rosen, and Nikki Hemmings. My first thought is that Hemmings looks and sounds better than Hilary. My second thought was more in depth. I think it is interesting that the CEO of Sharman is female, and the main spokesperson for the RIAA was female on the show.
If two battling tech titans elect to use a lady to be their spokesperson, I think that's cool. Maybe the RIAA just thought if Cary Sue $herman starts flapping those big alien lips of his, they might just turn people off.

But, they all have our money on their minds.
-bulk