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U2 manager takes Internet providers to task
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by slenderdog | January 30, 2008 at 02:59 am
293 views | 20 Recommendations | 2 comments
Paul McGuinness, longtime manager of rock band U2, has called on Internet service providers to immediately introduce disconnection policies to end illegal music downloads and urged governments
to make sure they do.
In a passionate keynote speech delivered Monday during the
International Managers Summit at the MIDEM music conference,
McGuinness said it was time for artists to stand up against
what he called the "shoddy, careless and downright dishonest
way they have been treated in the digital age."He spread the blame between record labels that "through
lack of foresight and planning allowed a range of industries to
arise that let people steal music"; Silicon Valley companies
that create marvelous devices but "don't think of themselves as
makers of burglary kits"; and governments who "created a
thieves' charter" by agreeing that ISPs should not be
responsible for what passes along their pipes."There's a lot of money in the music business, but it has
stopped coming to the artists," McGuinness said, though he
agreed that U2 long ago determined that it "would be pathetic
to be great artists but not be great at business.
Yes, there's a lot of money in the music business. But it's the record companies' fault that people have latched on to download technology without them. They have insisted on clinging to the hard copy distribution model that made them wealthy. This model allowed them to control access and presented a significant entry barrier to independent labels and artists since the capital requirements to manufacture and distribute large volumes were beyond the reach of small investors.
Now technology has smashed that model to pieces. They can't even give CDs away any more. Mr McGuinness is, naturally, concerned about declining revenues. But hasn't, ahem, cannabis prohibition taught us anything? People are still smoking like chimneys. If you criminalize free downloads, you only criminalize your audience. These people are your customers, sir.
Mr. McGuinness has the wrong end of the stick. Instead of clinging, like the industry dinosaurs, to the old business model and revenue streams, he should be devising means to exploit the demand for free downloads and reaping the revenues. It's a new world. The internet is free. Music is free. Wake up and get on with real business and stop moaning because you've been caught with your pants down.
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (2)
at 05:57 on January 30th, 2008
slenderdog, I like this story. It's good stuff.
These are the same people who would make perfectly legal tools illegal, simply because some people use them for copyright infringement.
Not only is copyright infringement a civil matter, not an actual law, it is a grey area in many countries and perfectly fine in others. So basically this comes down to a matter of ethics, and I won't be yelled at by a man worth billions who flies his own jet around.
Of all the worthwhile causes this guy could get on because of his fame and power, he goes for something that would make him more money. As annoying as Bono is, at least he wouldn't pull this bs.
at 07:27 on January 30th, 2008
There's still tons of money in the music industry-- as you say, it's just not all aimed towards "the artifact" anymore, and instead may be well geared towards live performances or some other multimedia. Right or wrong, MP3 listeners are now firmly used to gettin' it for free: clamoring for more anti-download rules is really just using a bucket to bail out the Titanic.