Question on MP3 Downloads

[Savage Pumpkin]

I know a lot of you know a lot more about this than me. Is the site I listed below one of the sites that falls into the "Piracy" sites? It seems like it but I'm not sure. If so, how can you tell? Thanks for the help!

http://www.gomusic.ru/

 

[ICEDEARTHFAN]

Looks like you have to pay for the songs to me.How could that be piracy?

 

[Yippee38]

Looks like you have to pay for the songs to me.How could that be piracy?

Because the site might not have legal right to distribute the music. They keep the money and the label and artists get nothing. That pretty much defines piracy. Dunno if that site is one of those, but being a Russian site, it's more likely to be than not.

 

[ICEDEARTHFAN]

I thought he was asking if it would be piracy for him or anyone to downlaod it.I didn't think about the other side of it.
Thanks Yippee38

 

[Savage Pumpkin]

I looked on their site and the new Gamma Ray- Live in Montreal 2CD Set is for sale for $1.48USD per CD. How can that not be piracy?

CD1=$1.48
CD2=$1.48

Total= $2.96

Total Price per song (22 Tracks) = 0.13 cents

 

[ICEDEARTHFAN]

Wow.I seriously doubt the band thinks their 2 cd set is only worth $2.96.Like Yippee38 said,I seriously doubt that is enough money to pay the band and the record company plus make a profit.

 

[mëtålspëd]

ANY of these mp3 sites based out of Russia are professional piracy. Please dont support that.

 

[St Enigma]

You never can tell about *any* Russian webshops by the sight or what's declared on them. They may or may not be legal according to local legislation, yet they almost never are when you ask a representative of global recording industry.
Most hardcopy-CDs and DVD-movies sold in Russia are pirated, that's a fact. Then again, which is easier to copy and sell illegally; an mp3 file or a disc? :Smug:

If you throw all ethics aside, buying from these shops isn't illegal, (at least not here) but while doing so, you'll risk your credit card data most likely on untrackable hands... so is it worth saving a few bucks?

Obviously this particular shop falls in the deeper piracy-category while they openly seem to sell bootlegs made at concerts in Russia, like *this*

 

[ICEDEARTHFAN]

Does it ever do any good to turn sites like that in to the proper organizations?

 

[ICEDEARTHFAN]

You never can tell about *any* Russian webshops by the sight or what's declared on them. They may or may not be legal according to local legislation, yet they almost never are when you ask a representative of global recording industry.
Most hardcopy-CDs and DVD-movies sold in Russia are pirated, that's a fact. Then again, which is easier to copy and sell illegally; an mp3 file or a disc? :Smug:

If you throw all ethics aside, buying from these shops isn't illegal, (at least not here) but while doing so, you'll risk your credit card data most likely on untrackable hands... so is it worth saving a few bucks?

Obviously this particular shop falls in the deeper piracy-category while they openly seem to sell bootlegs made at concerts in Russia, like *this*

Excellent points.I rarely trust my credit card to people in the states much less foreign countries!!!

 

[St Enigma]

Unfortunately there aren't organizations that would possess the power to shut these websites. They pop up faster than the heads of Hydra; close one and you'll have nine new... The fact is you don't obey Russian law in the USA, they don't obey your's.

In Russia bribing is the custom of the society in any business and as long as the officials get their skim, nothing will change.

 

[ICEDEARTHFAN]

When you think about what happened to Napster,instead of scaring other potential pirates,it added to their ego about seeing if they could get away with it.Then the RIAA makes the announcement that they are suing "you and your momma if we have to" and you would think that would stop a lot of it,but as you say,kill one and 9 more are born.

 

[AirGuitarLoonhouse]

PLEASE DON'T SUPPORT THIS!! There are many Russian (and other countries such as Singapore) sites that do this. It is a shame. I know a guy who spent a few hundred dollars on one of those sites and completed his whole desired collection. Quite a shame. He was young and just out of college with little money.

I didn't have those options back in high school and college when I was on a small budget, and I have to say it would have been tempting. I missed out on a lot of bands back then as I couldn't buy everything I wanted. But, now that I can afford it I have been able to "rediscover" bands that missed my budget cut back then.

I believe if you want to hear more of a band to determine whether you like them or not do one of the following:

1. Setup your own Pandora station and add the band. You'll eventually hear some of their music and you can decided whether you like them enough to get the CD. Essentially this is the modern parallel to the old days where regular radio would do this for you.

2. Find a friend that has the CD/.mp3s and "borrow" a copy. After hearing it, if you like it, buy it. If you don't then toss the CD aside or clear the .mp3s off your computer or iPod since you'll need room for the stuff you really like.

3. Find the band's site, myspace, or other site where you can hear some tracks legit for free.

 

[edgeofthorns]

Personally, I like using Amazon's MP3 service, because I do know that it's legit.

~Brian~

 

[Jasonic]

Personally, I like using Amazon's MP3 service, because I do know that it's legit.

~Brian~

Yeah, though that's only if you assume that the label honestly reports the sales back to the artist and pays them their due royalties.

Though each band / label might have a different agreement on download sales.

To me though, if it costs $1 / song to legally download an album, it would MUCH better help the bands if you purchased the disc direct from them or their label.

 

[Magius]

Yeah, though that's only if you assume that the label honestly reports the sales back to the artist and pays them their due royalties.

Though each band / label might have a different agreement on download sales.

To me though, if it costs $1 / song to legally download an album, it would MUCH better help the bands if you purchased the disc direct from them or their label.

Except that some smaller lables, and most bands aren't set up to report sales to SoundScan.

 

[shreddy]

Lots of the smaller bands are selling their own music on their myspace sites which is another route.

 

[edgeofthorns]

Yeah, though that's only if you assume that the label honestly reports the sales back to the artist and pays them their due royalties.

Though each band / label might have a different agreement on download sales.

To me though, if it costs $1 / song to legally download an album, it would MUCH better help the bands if you purchased the disc direct from them or their label.

Surely Amazon does pay the band's their royalties. Most of the albums are $8.99 and up on Amazon's site.

~Brian~

 

[Diamond45]

I highly recommend eMusic. Legal MP3s and they have lots of prog & power metal in their library.

http://www.emusic.com

 

[rushzil2112]

To me, if you are going to download, download for free, because with the loss in quality, it isn't going to be worth your money, so just buy the actual cd. My theory is, download, like it, buy it, don't like it, delete it, but reccomend it to people you think might like it, then they buy it, and everybody gets their due, or at least that is what I do. This has worked for me; the bands get their money, and the word is spread, because I always pimp bands I don't like but know my friends would like them