I hope the artists come out on top this.

[trekgeezer]

It's been a long time since I posted a rant against the RIAA    I can't believe their audacity.   The artists were doing work for hire as employees?


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/16/arts/music/springsteen-and-others-soon-eligible-to-recover-song-rights.html?_r=1

[feiyen]

What! what a bunch of malarkey! Although I don't know why they bother this will make them look worse and its not like today you can't publish your own music via itunes and amazon.

[akiratubo]

And the RIAA acts like a bunch of cocks again, thus prompting more illegal downloading from angry listeners who don't want to support the RIAA ...

[Mofo Rising]

Major music labels are the very essence of the middleman.

They were at one point very important. The mass communication of radio and television were, for a while, very restrictive. There were only a couple of options of getting your music out there. Music labels would promote your music and use their clout to get your songs played on the radio and, later, television.

Now, it is not so difficult to get your music into the hands of interested listeners. The advent of the internet has basically rendered the idea of music labels irrelevant. Bands now can immediately put their music out to interested parties. The one thing major labels had going for them, excellent production values, is now in the hands of everybody.

With the very significant money cut major labels took from their artists now rendered useless, there is absolutely no reason for any band to sign with a major label. In fact, many major bands have cut all ties with labels and now release their music directly (Nine Inch Nails, Radiohead).

I remember watching the comedian Daniel Tosh at a comedy show, who flat out told the audience to illegally download all his stuff. He made all his money touring, and did not care if people downloaded his stuff to hear him.

On the downside, it is absolutely shocking to hear the laws the entertainment industry is proposing to protect their absolutely useless middleman position. Even more shocking to realize that many of our elected Senators, old men who simply do not understand the internet, are willing to fight for their garbage.

The middleman industry of the music industry is a hemorrhaging failure. But they have deep pockets, and they are more than willing to f**k all true fans of music, and all the old men of Congress are listening only to the moneyed.

[Mr. DS]

Even more shocking to realize that many of our elected Senators, old men who simply do not understand the internet, are willing to fight for their garbage.

  A top problem with our country's govt I find, old men running it who are just out of touch.