I would like your thoughts and opinions on the recent issue of file-sharing and P2P networks like Kazaa, Grokster, and their clones.

Record companies are basically trying to eliminate a new means of sharing music solely for the sake of maximizing profits for their companies. The fact is, music is so easy to reproduce and share with others, record companies are finding it very difficult to justify why they should be a big business. And why should they when anyone can basically provide the same service that they can, and for a LOT cheaper?

I've found my stance changing on this matter. I used to believe that it was stealing, when Pvp files were shared. Now I think that this is business evolution at work. A business that was once thought to provide a valuable service is now found to be providing a very cheap service. I find it difficult to justify the record companies' profits. Justifying why record companies should remain profitable is like railroads attempting to sue airlines for transporting faster and cheaper, or the telegram trying to put telephones out of business. Weak.

I find their latest threat (filing lawsuits individual by individual) to be a feeble effort to attempt to latch on and justify their weak business in a very discpicable way.

It is stealing - but it is a train that cannot be stopped and will change the music industry in ways they can not prevent.

The lawsuits are a dying act of a dying industry. The record stores are going bust & the record companies are laying people off by the boat load. In 2000 the top 5 albums were all in the 5 million unit sales range - 2003 - only 1 was close & only 3 were over 2 million. It's a dying industry.

But - music will never die - it's a great thing that can only cut away the commercialism and crap from something that will always be there. Good riddence to $18 CD's that cost $1 to make. Screw the RIAA who are 2 steps removed from the Nazi party and long live music.

Madonna had her fun with her little fake mp3 - it was even better when hackers broke into her site & listed all the tracks from her new album for free download - ha - stupid talentless bitch. Her album was a huge flop - dropped off the charts like a lead balloon.

No matter what happens, file-sharing will probably outlive the record and movie companies. As long as there are computers and the internet, people will continue to share files, stealing or not.

Besides, at least ISP and broadband service providers are profiting from this, encouraging a better and faster internet. What would happen if the record and movie companies had their way?

Stealing my ass. Anything that promotes the exchange of non-destructive information is a good thing.

Profits from music (or any other creative industry for that matter) should primarily go to the artist him/herself, not the middlemen. And the restriction of file-sharing only exists to preserve the middlemen...in other words, it makes the transfer of information less efficient.

What's the point of the information age if we're going to restrict the flow of information?

I'm sorry. I'm just trying to say that some people consider file-sharing stealing. I don't believe so.

File-sharing is precisely what it is: sharing. Nobody is paying for or selling the stuff. Honestly, are we gonna accuse and prosecute those who share a CD by burning personal copies? Of course not. What the record and movie companies are doing is a waste of money and time. As the internet grows, so does file-sharing, as that is one of the core functions of the internet: information exchange.

Here try reading this http://www.arancidamoeba.com/mrr/problemwithmusic.html

If you don't want to read all of it, just look at the number figures at the bottom, I think it shows quite well why to be against the record companies.