The Internet and the music industry - Essay Example

Running Head: The Internet and the Music Industry A Paper on the Controversy between Music and the Internet In APA Style Introduction The present era can be considered as the period of rapid technological progress. The internet technology is one of the most important breakthroughs in the current era which enables limitless possibilities in terms of information sharing and data gathering. Music being an a form of expression and an inevitable component in the spiritual and artistic well being of the humanity is often tapped by the present technology to answer the needs of the people for better understanding and communicating. The said unavoidable role being played by both music and internet in the lives of the modern generation can be considered as the main root of the controversies between the internet and music. The main objective of the research undertaken is to be able to present the conflict between the said parties due to the issues related to copyright laws. Background Information Copyright is one of the categories of intellectual property that ensures exclusive rights to the creator of a particular piece of work which can be a publication, a distribution or an adaptation for a particular period of time in preparation to the entry of the said work in the public domain. It refers to creations of the mind that can be creative, scientific, artistic or intellectual in form which is an original idea of the creator (World Intellectual Property Organization, 2009b). One of the most important forms of media covered by the copyright law is the music which can be in the form of musical compositions and audio recordings. The research undertaken targets the presentation of the different issues, problems and controversies that can violate the copyright law. There are different ways that can violate the copyright law in relation to music. One is piracy and the other is the prohibited sharing through the internet. The main goal of the research is the piracy of music through the internet. Internet, being an agent of data sharing and recognized as information superhighway can be considered to surpass the limits of the laws that covers other areas specifically in terms of copyright. This can be attributed to the fact that the said technological advancement cannot be hindered by distance or territorial demarcations (Lehman, 1995; Silverthorne, 2004). The Copyright Provisions and Rules on Music The copyright protection is meant to have rules that cover the works and authorships that have literary and/or artistic merits. One of the bases of the said rule is expressed in the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works Article 2 which pertains to the ‘expression of the literary and artistic works’ including production and exposure to the public domains (World Intellectual Property Organization, 2009a). The rights of the creator are protected in terms of the different aspects related to the use of the original craftsmanship. This means that the owner has the sole right to use the creation in any ways. On the other hand, other parties are prohibited under the law to use the creation in the absence of the permission from the creator. In addition, the economic and moral rights also belong to the creator. This enables financial benefits upon use of the creation by others as well as the attachment of the creators name when the work is used (World Intellectual Property Organization, 2009a). In music, the musical compositions and audio performances are protected in cases of reproduction, distribution, incorporation in public performances, broadcasting content and communicating to the public, translation to other languages, and adaptation to other forms of arts (World Intellectual Property Organization, 2009a). Basically, the violation of the copyright rules is the common occurrence through the internet, thus, controversies and conflicts between the two parties constantly occurring. This can be attributed to the fact that in spite of the presence of the laws and rules, the implementation targeting the mode of distribution through the internet cannot control the increasing cases of piracy. Case Study of the Music Piracy Online The reproduction, distribution and music sharing through the internet can be considered as a form of piracy which applies the use of internet technology. Although this is the case, another view that can present an opposing outlook is the capability of the internet to promote sales of the music. Basically, the main issue related to the controversies can be viewed in different aspects. Due to the fact that the creator has the financial benefit of the musical composition, piracy has the possibility of decreasing and hindering such right on the basis of unknown illegal use. In professional performers and composers in the music industry, the sales can be an important aspect that serves as the basis for staying in business. In the presence of issues such as piracy and illegal use of original compositions through the internet, the music industry is suffering negative effects. For that matter, campaigns against such activities are continuously being advocated. File sharing is one of the most common ways that is used in the internet. Search engines and software programs that can copy unlimited types of files, mostly audio compositions, can be accessed or downloaded for free. The main mechanism of the said technology is peer-to-peer sharing. Although the said method is a new innovation that is not included in the traditional laws, provisions were established to cover such scenarios. One of the cases that are related to the file sharing that had been reprimanded by law is the case of the Napster. Based on the presented evidences related on the case, Napster is guilty of infringement of the copyrights of the company and music publishers of the specific plaintiffs. The said case presents the importance of paying for the services and products needs in different cases such as consumers to companies such as Napster as well as from distributors to original creators of the music and the performers of the audio records (Scott, 2001). The presented case is only one of the examples of the action related to the music piracy online. Due to the limitations in the coverage and provisions of the law regarding the advanced mode of piracy and the continuously increasing piracy (specifically 25% in 2000), the different advocacies were undertaken by the music industries as well as online authorities (IFPI, 2008). Based on the report of the IFPI, there main reasons for continuous undertaking of online music piracy are the easy access and availability of the illegal tools for commercial music copying and the insufficient implementation and enforcement by the government and respective authorities. As answer to such issues, different groups and advocacies targeting both the physical and online means of music piracy were established (IFPI, 2008). Although there are viewed regarding the affirmation of marketing of music through the internet, every related actions are still needed to be done with respect to the copyright law (Blythe and Wright, 2008). Included in the said advocacies are the establishment of groups that are working together with the music industry and the legal authorities. The IFPI created a 50-investigator team that has the job of worldwide music piracy coverage both online and in the physical aspects. Another method established that is viewed to lessen the illegal online peer-to-peer sharing and downloading is the process of making internet music legal. This is undertaken through the cooperation of different internet music companies and distributors (IFPI, 2008). The leaders of such actions are the MusicNet and Duet. The MusicNet works in cooperation with companies such as AOL, RealNetworks, EMI, BMG and Warner. On the other hand, Duet involves Yahoo!, Universal and Sony. In addition, the legalization of the online music provisions of Napster and MP3.com with the present legal tie-up with music and record companies also lessened the effects of online music piracy. These actions improved the scenario since 400 legitimate and licensed music online sites are presently active (IFPI, 2008). In addition, anti-piracy efforts by groups such as the Songbird, which offers anti-piracy softwares are continuously being strengthened. Legal actions in different countries such as Belgium, France, Denmark and China as well as the European Copyright Directive for protection of creators of music and performers are being supported by the law. IFPI which is working with national affiliates had eliminated 15,000 websites with illegal activities in the turn of the century. Such efforts and actions are continuously being undertaken and implemented to answer the growing need for protection in the internet superhighway which can be viewed as a limitless mode of communication (IFPI, 2008). Conclusion Based on the study undertaken that focused on the controversies relating music and the internet technology, there are different notions that had been achieved. One of the said notions is that the internet with its limitless capabilities to establish communication lines can be used in two ways. One is on the positive aspect of marketing, information dissemination and promotion in the music industry. On the other hand it can also be used illegally through peer-to-peer illegal sharing and copying of music files and recordings. The said illegal action is the target of the controversies between the internet and the music industry. Due to the said possibilities, the groups responsible to counteract such actions are the next focus of the said issues. These are the legal authorities and the internet and music groups. In effect, the copyright laws had been updated and the capabilities and modes of action of the music and internet authorities are continuously improved and updated to cover such needs. Thus, it can be concluded that cooperation and responsible efforts in the authorities as well as the vigilance of the public can control the negative repercussions of the different forms of controversies in the online music threshold. References Blythe, M. and Wright, P. (2008). Technology scruples: why intimidation will not save the recording industry and how enchantment might. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 12 (5), 411-420. IFPI (2008). Music Disc Piracy Leapt 25% in 2000: Recording Industry Acts Against Piracy on the Internet, Press Release 2001. Retrieved March 15, 2009, from http://www.grayzone.com/ifpi61201.htm Lehman, B. (1995). Intellectual Property and the National Information Infrastructure. Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights. Scott, M.D. (2001). Case Report 1 Music Copyright on the Internet: The Ninth Circuit Rules in the Napster Controversy. Computer Law & Security Report, 17 (3), May 2001, 192-193. Silverthorne, S. (2004, June 21). Music Downloads: Pirates—or Customers? Q&A with: Felix Oberholzer-Gee. Harvard Business School Working Knowledge. Retrieved March 15, 2009, from http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/4206.html World Intellectual Property Organization (2009a). Understanding Copyright and Related Rights. Retrieved March 15, 2009, from http://www.wipo.int/freepublications/en/intproperty/909/wipo_pub_909.pdf World Intellectual Property Organization (2009b). What is Intellectual Property? Retrieved March 15, 2009, http://www.wipo.int/about-ip/en/ipworldwide/country.htm Read More