Klarinet Archive - Posting 000041.txt from 2010/07

From: "Kevin Fay" <kevin.fay.home@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Sheet music copyright
Date: Mon, 05 Jul 2010 18:53:52 -0400


Joseph Wakeling responded to my post

<<<This is a false distinction, Joseph. "Private" distribution of sheet
music - and recordings - most definitely reduces demand for the commercially
published stuff, hitting the composer square in the pocketbook.>>>

with:

<<<I realized I did not respond properly to this specific point.>>>

True. Then:

<<<I think it is a question that is less clear-cut than you make out given
the degree of reach and publicity that can be gained from free internet
distribution. The scale of both have changed dramatically and that has big
consequences for what the most profitable distribution model is.>>>

Not true. The question isn't what is the most economically beneficial for
the artist, it's who gets to make that choice.

The Grateful Dead and Nine Inch Nails *believe* that the "sharing" of their
music might make them even more popular. They might be right; it's possible
that this is the most profitable business model now (although I rather doubt
it). I'm not arguing with that - they can have any business model they
want. I'm saying that it should be up to them to *choose* the business
model they want.

Your distinction between the theft of physical objects and copying of
"intangible" property is false, because both result in a lost sale. You
cannot sell what people take for free.

Even tangible objects can derive the majority of their value from intangible
property. Take medicine, for example. The marginal cost to produce most
drugs is close to zero - does this mean that all pills should be free? Who
would pay for their development?

There are other slices of intellectual property that fall into the same
boat. A set of architectural plans for a house costs several thousand
dollars. You can now download them over the internet in .pdf form. Does
the fact that they can be transported by electrons make it OK to freely
copy, just because I don't sell them?

kjf

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