ALL OF MP3 NEWS
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070521-allofmp3-voucher-operation-shut-down-in-europe.html
GEK - 'The only solution perhaps is to have a licensed bandwidth situation where all music is essentially free but "taxed" based on the identification of filetypes passing thru servers-- revenues being assessed in similar way to royalties for airplay now perhaps?
Either that will develop or music will become increasingly polarised between the ultra-underground (essentially "gentleman musicians") and the hyper-marketing budget overground of an increasingly small range of trans-global mass appeal. The interesting stuff in the middle gets squeezed tho, of course...'
This still doesn't solve ripley's big issue of a bad record industry ripping off artists, which i think is pretty overstated in all honesty and built around some hit air, majors are keen to get a quick return on their money, but this is also because they spend alot . Labels also tend to loose money on all sorts of artists that they spend alot of money on as well.
It's a weird one too as plenty of people do make money from music, there are other forms of making cash from it too, publishing, playing live etc, merchandise. lucrative licences etc.. if you want to play that game.
Lots of underground type people don't want to fuck about with that stuff, so they rely on music ie releases and live as their income, i think in alot of ways, the audiences for this stuff respond suprisingly supportivley to this too, as if there is a moral economy to music if the right choices are made and this is clearly and honestly stated to the prospective audience. I know alot of underground audiences regard mp3 as a secondary or tertiary format too, and want something in their hands, but of course, these audiences are older and this could all change.