ast week in this space, I wondered why the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) and movie studios get so worked up about online file swapping, when public libraries distribute their works freely without a penny of compensation.
As usual, some of this column?s readers responded thoughtfully and with authority; I thought I?d share three of those reactions with you this week.
The most enlightening piece of e-mail came straight from the source: the Video Software Dealers Association, the trade association for the home video industry. Public affairs executive Sean Bersell neatly nipped my queries in the bud:
?You said, ?Why do the publishers and movie studios let the library get away with it? For that matter, why don't they object to the Blockbusters of the world, who let people rent movies by the millions??
?The answer is, ?Because they don?t have a choice.?
Copyright law requires copyright holders to give up their ability to control distribution of those works once they have put them into the stream of commerce. This principle, commonly referred to as the ?first sale doctrine,? is codified in Section 109 of the Copyright Act. The first sale doctrine gives libraries and video retailers the right to rent and sell prerecorded videos and video games without the authorization of the copyright holder.?
Mr. Bersell pointed out, too, that in fact, members of his organization did indeed raise ?fierce objections,? as the vsda.org Web site puts it, to the rental of videos. He went on: ?Second, you said, ?Whether we steal these movies or rent them, the Hollywood studios don't see another penny after the initial sale.? That used to be true, but in the late 1990s, most major studios entered into revenue-sharing arrangements with major video rental chains. Under these agreements, the studios and the rental stores split the rental revenue. Initially, revenue sharing was used only on VHS, but it is now being extended to DVD. I should note that revenue sharing has been controversial in the industry.?
Meanwhile, another reader noted that, ?Our real problem isn't here. It's in Asia. My brother just came back from China with maybe 20 copies of ?X-Men 2,? ?Matrix Reloaded? and ?Terminator 3.? These aren?t crummy DiVX copies-- they are gorgeous DVD-R, with nice motion menus, fake covers, ISBN numbers, the whole thing. You'd swear that they were the real thing. So, why are we going after our domestic kids in colleges and high schools...when our real pirates are in China??
Finally, this intriguing note arrived from a guy who?s both a software engineer and a musician in two bands: ?It?s my belief that music CDs will soon be given away free. The CD will become promotional material to advertise a band?s live shows and merchandise for sale. Space inside the CD cover could even be sold for advertising.
?This will have several results: First, bands will reduce the cost of producing a CD by making use of the incredible capabilities of your average digital recording system to avoid the ridiculous hourly prices that professional recording studios charge. (Next week my band is doing this very thing.) Self-production will become the norm.
?Second, CDs will become shorter, more focused and released more frequently. (?See us on tour next month at these locations! Hear these four songs performed live!?) Third, bands will perform live far more often and venues for live music will see a resurgence in popularity.?
From your mouth to the RIAA?s ear, buddy.
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