A few simple questions/ thoughts. Who gets to lose when we fans download mp3s and not buy the original CDs/ Tapes? Rahman or the music label?
If the music label loses, will not go to Rahman again? Was it his mistake in the first place? Ok, the music industry will be in shambles and labels may pay lesser to composers/ producers to procure music. Does Rahman get paid lesser in that case? Why do music labels force people to buy a CD, that can otherwise accomodate a lot more, that has only 6 tracks? What is stopping them from innovating simple things - include BGMs, comment by the composer, making of the soundtrack-like extras? When we're moving towards having all our songs in single devices like iPod etc, why do we buy individual CDs that contain a few tracks, rip them ourselves and make mp3s? The lesser said about the quality of cassettes, the better. I usually download mp3s and buy only cassettes - for two reasons. To play in my car and to not feel guilty. The issue here is that music labels have been taking us for a royal ride all these days. Now, when they bear the brunt, they talk of artist protection and legal issues. In spite of all the talk of releasing online versions simultaneously, nothing has materialised since. Releasing them after a week/ month will not help. The harsh fact is that 320 KBPS mp3s are available within minutes of the CD launch. In the bottorrent forums that I usually download from, I was able to see nearly 700 seeds (people who have downloaded fully and are uploading) and more than 1500 peers (people who have downloaded partially and are also uploading at the same time) for Mangal Pandey on the day it was released - at 4 PM in the evening! All this mp3 related guilt-talk is sheer humbug. If I have an online option to buy mp3s legitimately, I'd not be frequenting torrent forums. iTunes has proven this beyond doubt in the US. The same tracks available in iTunes for 99 cents is available in many other torrents and P2Ps like soulseek/ Kazaa/ eMule, for free! And still iTunes succeeds. And how? Its about consumer's choice and making available what is in demand. And not force outdated distribution methods on them. Yes, our labels may be slow in embracing technology but the later they enter, the more they lose. The 6000 strong group need not only think of chatting with our demi-god or leading film personalities to know nuggets of trivia about the man. We could very well prove a point, if need be. It could be unconvetional - like the Japanese shoe-factory strike, where they worked during strikes, but produced shoes only for the left foot. How about urging people to buy only cassettes and not CDs. The tape to CD path took a phenomenally long time to enter India - again, by choice from the music labels. Chances are, the CD to digital formats might not take so much time, partly 'cos it'd be forced down the music label's throat, by the people to whom it was intended. Karthik This August, Discover the Birth of Your Independence and The Magic of A.R.Rahman's Music in Mangal Pandey - The Rising http://www.risingthefilm.com http://www.mangalpandeythefilm.com Music released: Jul 14, 2005 Movie releases: Aug 12, 2005 Explore, Experience, Enjoy A.R.Rahman - The Man, The Music, The Magic. Only at arrahmanfans - The definitive A.R.Rahman e-community. Homepage: http://www.arrahmanfans.com Admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arrahmanfans/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
