You have 23,767,325 of 23,767,325 known music FLACs.

Your ‘Wild West’ analogy doesn’t stack up I’m afraid.

In the frontier days, poor helpless colonists were at the mercy of ruthless bandits on horseback. You seem to be equating the four major labels with the quivering townsfolk of old.

Really? The same four labels that sue dead people? And children? And sign the ‘talent’ into disgusting terms, in which they have to repay the production costs before they see a cent?

These are the people that need protecting?

Seriously?

Yes, things will change. But unlike the wild west, these days most people seem to think its the system that’s wrong, not society. Every poll, every anecdote I hear, tells me that most folk see little to no problem with sharing media, copyright or otherwise.

Copyright makes no sense in the digital era. It needs to be replaced.

Yes, artists need to be paid, and we need to find a way to do that. But the days of people paying a per-unit price so that some record label exec can keep his Maybach gassed are rapidly drawing to a close.

Music is a social phenomenom. Soon, it will belong to the people.

Come on your telling me you never let someone borrow your car, your clothes, or your ipod. PLEEEAAASEEE. You are just as liable. All those companies own the rights to those items, why don’t they sue. This is just beaucratic b.s. They only want what they can’t have. My head on a platter. I download and share terabytes of data annually and i will continue to do so. Reasoned mind you should be ashamed of yourself. You ever boughta cd/dvd and loaned it to someone, by definition you shared it. And since you can’t distinguish sharing from piracy you are guilty as charged. GTH

quoted for truth.

Wow, i do not even know where to start. Short version: no you did not get it.

A bit longer: You did not read the “AS LONG AS THERE IS A DEMAND OF CULTURE/KNOWLEDGE, ARTISTS/RESEARCHERS WILL GET PAID ONE WAY OR ANOTHER” part did you, or maybe you just did not understand? The true creators WILL ALWAYS GET PAID.

Regarding the legal responsibility: Yes i do think that there should be some responsibility (for example, creators should still have exclusive rights to “sell” the product). But I also believe there is ways of reducing the costs (by for example cutting out the middle man, and more efficient distribution)and then making people willing to pay the “correct” price. Spotify is a good example (although they have not cut out the middle man) of digital distribution which has reduced the costs and I happily pay my 9.99 (although some of my favorite artists are not even included). I am also sure that this service would have never come to life if it wasn’t for the fact that the music industry had to adopt in order to compete with the “pirates”. However if a law (that even you seem to believe is not the will of the people) is passed making it possible for the media companies keep operating like they are currently doing (or even worse), then there will not been any progress.

This is why I also believe that a law, that is not the will of the people should never be passed, because it is only in favor of outdated media companies and waist of resources. You also asked if I believe that industry employees should find some other way to earn their livings. The answer is that once the middle man is cut out they will have to, don’t they? Why should a protectionist law like ACTA be passed for the “media” industry. What gives them the right to gain such an advantage compared to others?

On topic that i have not yet discussed is if “the people responsible for this lawbreaking should enjoy immunity from the law” (as the law is now). My answer would have to be yes, because if they all (which of course would be impossible) would be convicted for “making illegal copies” (NOT THEFT!!!) then there would be no incentive for “the industry” to change.

And all of this….because the group that robbed you is in greater numbers than you are.