Wednesday, October 27, 2010
In Shock-No more LimeWire?
While I knew that it was only a matter of time...I'm rather sad to report that LimeWire is no more. I read a tweet from a friend about it and had to follow up because I was in disbelief. After poking around I found this article from the Toronto Sun written after the official ruling by a United States federal judge to shut down LimeWire. I know Mike mentioned the other week about the government's plans and the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement...I'm so up in the air about it. I can see where the music industry is mad. Obviously they're spending their time and money to create this music. But musicians are also making a lot of money performing, making appearances, selling books, and shirts. They should just share that money with their producers. The Recording Industry Association of America says LimeWire has costs music companies and artists "hundreds of millions of dollars." I can see how this MIGHT be possible. However. I believe the internet is about sharing. And this definitely includes music (even if I don't necessarily own it myself). If I'm not getting it for free from LimeWire then I will just have to find it elsewhere. There's no stopping me in my pursuit of free music, much like I believe my peers will not stop hunting for it too. So yes, I admit it-I use LimeWire. I'm not ashamed to say it. I can't remember the last time I bought a CD. In a store. Or even borrowed a CD from a friend. But isn't that what LimeWire really is? I'm borrowing a CD of assorted music from a friend I just haven't met face to face. The article says that LimeWire has, or should I now say had, more than 50 million monthly users...I say I'm going to miss my friends. AND their rockin' music.
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I was really sad to hear about LimeWire going down too! You know people have always found ways to get free music. I remember when I was younger, back in the days of cassette tapes, I used to listen to the radio religiously until my favorite song came on and then I would record it onto a tape. I had so many of these tapes with all my favorite songs...I thought I was pretty genius back then! haha! So people will just find new ways to get music.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with what you said about the money issue too. These people are FREAKING LOADED! They make so much money from everything else yet they have to sit around and whine about not making money....who does that? I get that its sort of just the principle and that it is technically bad...but it's just so frustrating.
Here's the deal...I'm not gonna pay for music. So I'll be using slacker radio, youtube, and whatever else to get my music fixes and the music industry still won't be getting a dime from me! So take that!
Oh and just another thought...for those of you who saw The Social Network. Looks like Sean Parker was right...he did change everything forever with Napster and it's still causing issues today!
ReplyDeleteWow okay, sorry for commenting so much but I just read the article and saw this "U.S. recorded music sales have fallen in value to $7.7 billion in 2009 from $14.5 billion in 1999"
ReplyDeleteOh no...7.7 billion dollars....how will they ever survive?! *sarcasm*
Yes! exactly! like they are suffering sooooooo much!
ReplyDeleteI feel indifferent about the issue. I used to use limewire last on my computer freshman year, but when my computer crashed, I vowed never to use it again! It was a monster haha! And it's funny because I am so for sharing music, but when it comes to pirating movies I am beyond against it, but aren't the two pretty much the same? Yeah....I dunno I just feel like music is such an influential part of our every day life, it can change our mood, change our minds, and even influence us to bust a move or two (which i frequently get caught doing on the quad with my ipod in). I think you are right about how the music industries can be mad, but they do make a ton of money from endorsements and a lot of the things you said as well, so shouldn't that be enough? nope, cuz in our society you don't settle for enough.... oh well video2mp3.com is the site i use to take youtube music videos and change the file to and mp3 file so I can listen to it. haha...ehh I hope thats ok that I just shared that?
ReplyDeletei honestly had no idea about shutting limewire down. i use it all the time and somehow managed to miss that news completely. i guess i could say i don't have a strong standpoint in terms of the ethics of the issue, but i'm personally going to miss it a lot. I use limewire all the time, but i suppose i'll have to find some alternative. i agree that musicians make so much money doing what they do, and think that it couldn't hurt to share a little with others. if limewire was really cause the music industries to lose all this money, wouldn't it have been shut down a while ago?
ReplyDeleteI agree with you guys and can definitely see people looking for the next alternative to get free music. I think there is some valid points to both sides of the argument, but I cant believe they actually shut it down. I think the way music has thrived on the internet has really changed the ways in which people listen to music, find new music and share with others. Sites like Youtube promote the sharing of videos and music and often many new artists get a following just by posting their work, so I think it has completely changed the way our society views downloading anything for that matter. We are so used to sharing on the internet that it does not seem wrong. I think that its such a new concept still and the loss of such a large amount of money is really the main driving force behind their reasons to shut it down.
ReplyDeleteHmmm...Interesting comments. I appreciate the viewpoints here (yes, I also like getting stuff for free instead of having to pay for it). However, I think I'm just going to have to borrow a phrase from Kayla and say "I'm sorry but..." I have to disagree with the idea that it's okay to do "unauthorized sharing" or downloading of copyright protected material, because the record companies are already rich. I mean, would we feel justified in driving off and not paying for a tank of gas because oil companies are already rich? Shoplifting from Wal-Mart (they are waaaay rich)? Or even, sneaking into a concert without buying a ticket because the promoters and musicians are already rich?
ReplyDeleteOkay, well, I could rant further about this but I'll spare you all! This is an important topic, however. The easy access to lots of material online (music, movies, books, etc) has certainly caused big issues. And once again - the internet shows its positive sides and its negative sides. If you are a struggling musician - on the one hand, the internet makes it easier for you to be heard and make your presence known. On the other hand, it also makes it easier for people to not pay for the fruits of your labor. Clearly, people who make a living making (or producing, or promoting) music will have to figure out different ways to be successful.
nothing of value was lost :| . Limewire was garbage to begin with, full of viruses and spam. however, it's important to note that while record sales are dropping, people will still pay to see live concerts, which are much more lucrative. nobody wants another coaster these days, and because current music technology involves computers, e.g. iTunes and its .mp3 files, it is easily shareable over the internet. its safe to say that even if more file sharing sites get shut down, peer-to-peer file sharing will just find another way to get around it. don't most people torrent these days anyway?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Mike. And I would hope that most people use torrents now because it avoids all the spam and viruses that other downloading sites provide you with. I don't think the government can completely stop people from file sharing. The internet seems to be every-man's-land, so therefore the rules of it depend on the people. People want free music.
ReplyDeleteI really think the music industry may be overreacting a little bit. People are going to share music one way or another. And I am personally someone who's all for sharing music. I think most other people nowadays are too. I'm not seeing how they could really stop it so long as we have that attitude about the subject. As you guys all said artists are still making bank from concerts, merchandise sales, etc. Since when did music become all about the money?
ReplyDelete