File Sharing and the Grokster Case
Becker and Posner discuss.
I know no one is going to believe me, but I don't not swap files illegally. I don't even have a peer to peer program on my computer. I got all high and mighty about it and decided that I couldn't do it. Intellectual property is still property. I would be very hypocritical to support property rights in one instance but violate them myself in another instance.
I have an iPod and iTunes. I have purchased songs from iTunes, but not many. I only buy a song if I know that I won't want to buy the CD from the artist. I like having CDs for a specific kind of listening. I am the kind of person that puts a CD into the stereo and listens to the whole thing. But when I go out and use my mp3 player, I like random tracks from different artists. To me, it is two different kinds of listening for different environments.
I'm not sure the Grokster case really solves anything. The file sharing community online always seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. I remember being a freshman in college and watching how the programs evolved. Everyone had Napster, then Scour, then Bearshare, then WinMX, then Kazaa, then Soulseek. Everyone just sort of migrated from program to program. The music industry can put protections on CDs, but people will find ways around them. I'm not sure what can be done, but I think that nothing will turn back the clock like the record companies want. But they don't have to worry about me. Cause I pay for music, like a chump.
I know no one is going to believe me, but I don't not swap files illegally. I don't even have a peer to peer program on my computer. I got all high and mighty about it and decided that I couldn't do it. Intellectual property is still property. I would be very hypocritical to support property rights in one instance but violate them myself in another instance.
I have an iPod and iTunes. I have purchased songs from iTunes, but not many. I only buy a song if I know that I won't want to buy the CD from the artist. I like having CDs for a specific kind of listening. I am the kind of person that puts a CD into the stereo and listens to the whole thing. But when I go out and use my mp3 player, I like random tracks from different artists. To me, it is two different kinds of listening for different environments.
I'm not sure the Grokster case really solves anything. The file sharing community online always seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. I remember being a freshman in college and watching how the programs evolved. Everyone had Napster, then Scour, then Bearshare, then WinMX, then Kazaa, then Soulseek. Everyone just sort of migrated from program to program. The music industry can put protections on CDs, but people will find ways around them. I'm not sure what can be done, but I think that nothing will turn back the clock like the record companies want. But they don't have to worry about me. Cause I pay for music, like a chump.
