Do we have the right to download music for free? - Music Investigation

Music investigation


Do we have the right to download music for free?

I would like to investigate this as I think there are many different opinions, it will be interesting to see how it varies between different age groups and occupations. I think that the older the person and the better their job then they will be more likely to pay to download music or buy the CD. Whereas those who earn less and are younger, perhaps having less awareness of their consequences, will choose to download their music for free.

Websites such as limewire and frostwire allow users to share their music with others. This means that when someone uploads content to the site it is available for others to download. The software is free to download and use but it is usually plagued by computer viruses and bugs. Although it is not illegal to run the website it is however illegal to upload copyrighted music to these sites. Other types of music such commons licensed music and that of which the copyright has expired are legal to download. It is only an offence to download copyrighted music, as you are not paying for the use and have no permission from the copyright holder. Many users are unaware that using this software may be illegal as the site itself gives no clear warning. I managed to find this useful information on the limewire website regarding legality and copyright. “ The program distributed by Lime Wire, "LimeWire BASIC" and "LimeWire PRO", is legal software, but like many legal things, it is possible to use it in illegal ways. Specifically, it is illegal for you to use LimeWire to share, distribute or download (all of which we call sharing) copyrighted files without permission. The LimeWire program is distributed and licensed for use only in an authorized and lawful manner and not to share files which the copyright owner has not permitted to be shared. Your use of LimeWire BASIC or purchase of LimeWire PRO does not constitute a license in or to share unauthorized or unlawful materials. Your activities on peer-to-peer networks such as LimeWire may be monitored by copyright owners. Violation of copyright laws may subject one to substantial money damages. Copyright owners have sued thousands of people for infringement of copyright over peer-to-peer networks.”

Although it gives warning not to use copyrighted material and does tell you clearly it is an offence this information is not clear to the user who may be unaware that what their downloading is illegal. As this subject has been an area of debate most people should by now be aware that downloading copyright material is illegal. On a technical level we do not have the right to download most music for free. Copyright owned by music labels and artists give them the rights to it, meaning if you have not paid them for it you are breaching the copyright conditions. However the public still continue to do this despite knowing the risks. Internet companies are trying to crack down on illegal downloading imposing stricter fines and punishment, as this is so widespread it will be a very difficult thing to do. I am going to look more closely at people’s personal opinion regardless of the law.

I started by looking at articles on websites such as the guardian and the times. They both seemed to argue that it is morally wrong to download music for free and that it was like stealing from the artist. If you are downloading it for free the artist you like will receive no money and potentially lose out on thousands of pounds every year. Whilst users on the websites had a range of different opinions. Commenting that artist earn too much already, why shouldn’t we take advantage of this software. A large number stated they did think it was wrong as it’s like stealing and that tougher measure such as closing own limewire and frostwire should be brought in.

I have already gathered that there is a varied opinion I wanted to see if this varied between ages and occupations. I used the website www.yahooanswers.com , a site where you can post any general questions you may have, as well as answering those that people have posted. I asked- Do you think we should have the right to download music for free? I also asked them to leave their age and occupation (many chose not to). I used this method as I thought it would give me the best access to a wide range of people. In total I got 24 responses although not all of them were useful. Below is a selection of the most interesting responses from the website;

“I think it's OK for people with low income to download music illegally because they have a hard time keeping food on the table but they have the right to listen to some good music. But rich people should NEVER download illegally. They should purchase legally to support the artists/bands.

I'm poor, I'll be honest.” This user who is 19 and from a low income background thinks it should be right for poor people, who do not always have the necessary funds to buy the music they want, to download music for free but has a strong opinion that rich people who can afford it should never do. This seems slightly hypocritical and would be a very hard measure to enforce.

“I don't think its right to illegally download music, but you can't expect people to buy the music if it's available for free. I use YouTube to MP3 Converter. However, to make up for it, I buy allot of official merchandise, and I download from the official channels, which the band are paid to have anyway so I don't feel so bad.” This user who is a student explains many people’s thinking that although it is wrong if its there for free why would you pay for it. She also raises an interesting point about buying merchandise by which she pays the artists some money through other products.

The next user is 33 and has a job in marketing “It isn't right, it affects more than just the artist....I buy my music the old fashion way...I buy the CD” He seems to understand that it is stealing from the artists and isn’t a very moral thing to do.

“It is not right but that doesn't stop people doing it. I USED to do it, but saw the error of my ways, plus everyone was getting caught, so I stopped” This comment from a 22 year old secretary shows how over the years awareness of illegal downloads has become more apparent and that companies beginning to crack down on tit has had an effect on the audiences buying habits.

“I believe we should have the right to download music for free. People download it illegally anyway, so why not make it legal?” like many others this 14 year old student cannot see the point in paying when lots of other people are downloading it for free.

“No, I think if you want to have them on your iPod or w/e, purchase them.

It's like food- You wouldn't go to the supermarket and just take it because you didn't want to pay, and that company was rich already, would you? You can listen to music in so many ways- YouTube, the Radio, Telly music channels.” This comment from a 41 year old teacher think downloading music free is like stealing therefore morally wrong. I like the quote she has written about stealing from shops as this put it into perspective. You certainly wouldn’t steal from a shop so why is ok to steal from an artist? If more people looked at it like this then would perhaps be more aware of the effect it has and how it is wrong.

This research has showed me many different opinions from music consumers. There seems to be a lot of conflict and lashes of opinion. Whilst those who are younger and hove little or no income generally said they should have the right to download music for free. Those who were older and had a well paying job said they thought it was wrong to download music for free and knew that it was illegal. The battle seems to take place between those who are older and younger people with less money. On the whole the majority of people regardless of age and occupation said the believed it was wrong to download music for free and that you should pay for it.

There has been a growth recently in websites such as last.fm and Spotify. Which allow you to select from many different tracks to listen to on your computer but not download them, kind of like a personalized radio. This is paid for through adverts in between tracks. You tube also gives you the chance to listen to music for free legally as they monitor their site. Due to there now being many other sources of listening to music for free I think less people will choose to illegally download, and that now people have legal free access they should stop using illegal sites and choose other sources.

With all the facts and peoples opinions considered I personally think it is both illegal and morally wrong to download music for free. It is stealing from the artist, you wouldn’t normally steal a CD in real life so it isn’t really that different to illegally download music. The protection currently cover music is not sufficient to cover this current practice. In order to stop this ensures everyone pays legally for their music I think tougher measures need to be brought in. Such as closing down illegal sites and enforcing more punishments as too many people get away with it. In the future I think less people will illegally download music as a result of greater awareness and tougher consequences, but that it will still be widely used causing problems for artist and music labels