What does Free Mean? Destroying Culture

Today it is all about the ‘sharing’ online and the ‘traffic’ that generates.

Paying for our arts and culture is a moral question to me and we have to ask ourselves 'Do we want a thriving cultural Arts or not?'  If we do then we need to support it.  How much does culture matter for us?

Because some are getting rich on the back of 'Free' on the Internet - and it's not the evil Record companies or the artists. Its' the high-tech, telecom and Internet firms that are raking it in. They are making billions through search advertising and traffic around 'illegal file sharing' without investing a penny in the artists. Someone is always making money. Money is essentially about 'trade' or the 'marketplace.'

Piracy invests in technology and seizes other people's music, movies and games to feel traffic and make money.  It is basic theft.   

Google tracks every key stroke to target ads.  The problem is that artists have to first be well known and promoted by a Label.  With legal downloading (iTunes, Spotify) margins are tight. The internet has drastically changed the music (and other arts) market place. It is not mainly about the physical CD anymore. 

According to Mega uploads figures in traffic and advertising, more can be made for an artist through their site than through traditional record labels – i.e the more downloads/traffic the more artists earn. So the music is free to public – but the artists still gets paid. The Big Question is? Why aren’t the record labels trying to get ahead of the game rather than playing catch up?  Why haven’t they set up their own file sharing service or networking site? It’s all about the ‘sharing’ online – ands the ‘traffic’ that generates.

DJs and others have lead to a sizable increase in vinyl sales. It is now about ‘traffic’ and the number of hits – which had led to the value of advertising as seen on YouTube, Facebook and other valuable sites.

Figures - Googles’ revenues $10.6 billion; facebook 45 billion; Apple (world’s most valuable stock value of $500 billion.  The advisers to Media Companies (Consultants) have been making megabucks ‘advising’ the labels on how to fight back. But they are  part of the Old School thinking too. 

Copyright Laws have recently been extended in Europe from 50 to 70 years – will this help? If you are a creator you deserve to get paid for your work while  you have the right to license your work to whoever you want to. The commerce between producer and consumer is important. However copyright can also restrict freedom of expression. 

Record Labels... are they simply a bank and a marketing agency?  Sites like Bandcamp are thriving but there is the problem of ‘quantity’ vs quality. Is it possible that 10,000 hobbyist bands can match the quality and creativity of one very talented band who top the charts and offer a new sound? 

Live Music. Then there is the question of merchandise and the live gigs. Many music fans feel – well why shouldn’t the music be free the artists can make a living from the gigs.

Similar problems are also facing writers, photographers and journalists with sales of newspaper declining. There are news websites that are thriving such as the Huffington Post - and their writers do not get paid. How does this all work and what about young professionals starting out? 

The free downloading sites (now Retro share) will always be a few steps ahead of the authorities. There really is no way to stop it.  There must be new approaches taken to copyright and music sharing. Sweden gave us Pirate Bay and now Spotify - of its 10m users 3m pay. Its aim was to offer a better service people would pay for. It seems people are willing to subscribe and pay for their music. We are now more 'free' to select our music and this is all good and loosens the labels hold over pop and rock music. However there are always been a requirement in all the Arts for filters and for experts who judge what works and what doesn't. A few hundred years back the royal court sponsored musicians and artists considered geniuses. So who will now?         

If we can afford to pay or 'donate' to our favourite artists we should support them. It is not enough to say that they will make money on gigs, especially if we don't buy their gig tickets! Some artists do make money on their merchandise (such as the metal bands). It is noticeable that many older artists continue to tour (a good example is Leonard Cohen) and I know that many really enjoy the road and the live gigs. 
But also it means bands are forced now to tour one album for three years or so in order to break even.

Compare this to the Beatles recording three albums in one year back in the 60s! I am sure this means 'creativity' gets lost and that music is being diluted.  PS (The FAC) Featured Artist Coalition - gives the artist a voice.