How much do you pay your artists per CD sold? 50p? less?

How much money is being stolen from the mouths of the "starving" artists with creative accounting and ridiculous signing on terms because the record companies used to control the only way to get their music out there.

Guess what.. times up

J.K., ENG,

The official position of the music industry here in the US is that if you make a copy of a CD to play in your own iPod, you are stealing from them. And their "copy protection" prevents normal use of legal downloads.

Their position is so extreme and absurd that it encourages illegal downloading.

e carpenter, New York, usa

I used iTunes for 4 months happily paying 79p per song. When I tried to play this music in my car via USB i couldn't because of the draconian DRM system that record labels forced Apple into adopting.
Well it goes without saying that I now "illegally" download my music because of these restrictions!

Iain, Peterborough, Cambs

Many support reasonable copyright but also support liberal licensing of music under CC and free art licenses. We disapprove of piracy. However, we also recognize that many "solutions" to the issue, such as DRM, scattergun litigation by the RIAA and ISP intervention do harm. More nuance, please.

gurdonark, Allen, Texas , USA

This is lies, the ISP's were blackmailed into this by the BPI/gov. I'm a fair minded customer, I don't agree with this move so you don't speak for me. You created DRM against customer wishes, refused to give us online DRM free music, made many CD's PC unreadable. You created this by greed, not us!

Law, Manchester,

How many times do we have to pay for the same music I bought music on vynal again on CD expected to pay again for the same songs on MP3 rip off springs to mind. speaking of rip off what about the artists. people like Elton John may get money from a recording most dont the lables grab the lot.

mike, preston, England

Libraries have not stopped people writing or buying books .

Benzo, Nr Chelmsford,

It's no longer possible to enforce copyright without grotesque violations of human rights. It's therefore necessary to change the copyright regime to something that is enforceable, even if that destroys the current business models used in the music industry. Find a new business model now.

Mike Scott, London, UK

I understand where the music industry is coming from But CD are so expenzive and the song on them.. well half are bit rubbish. Music industry will never die. artist recieve millions. I want to choose the song I like and If It wasnt for free downloads I wouldnt of heard of some of the great artists.

Paul, Norfolk, uk

Yes - we have a real shortage of music, not like the glut of doctors, nurses, teachers etc.

Peter, Sittingbourne,

I support bands by buying merchandise such as tshirts and I will always attempt to see a band if it is playing locally.

Jack, Bristol, UK

The writer of this article needs to understand that the industry is finished, and the commercial model that drives it is over. Artist development has been in steep decline for well over a decade, and record labels are now a total irrelevance. I speak as someone with 25+ years at the top of the game.

Alastair Johnson, Alicante, Spain

Unfortunately whilst people have needed bread for most of time we have not needed recorded music which is a very recent thing and may be a brief thing as something that is sold. Also bread is a pound a loaf, a cd until recently was often 16 quid despite costing little to make.

David Hope, York,

I think something people seem to forget is that the music industry wants eat their cake. They are skilled at creating what we want because they use memetics to do so. Then when we download they cry foul??? Albums rarely have all good songs and downloading at the big I what a joke its not yours...

mark, Bangor, Wales

The music industry will always be around and the ones who survive are the ones who adapt. Artists who are becoming more aware on how to reap the benefits through the use of the web (Arctic monkeys, etc) are cutting out the middleman. The old formula is dead. The industry is changing with the times.

Dom, London,

A few years ago, I remember seeing a Beatles cd in HMV for £17, a lot of money for a 30 minute, 40 year old purchase. Is it any wonder that people download illegally?

James, Bristol,

Ignore 'illegal music downloading' its free publicity, your actual fans are the ones who are buying. I believe this to be nothing more than 'Try before you buy', impulse downloaders and teens/children with no money.

Charles, Saint Paul, MN, USA

Musicians make music not only for money but because they think they have something important to express. I'd guess many musicians are pleased that their music can spread so easily, and, through downloads, benefit from a wider range of influences.

Chris, Harrow,

Im sympathetic to the difficulties of running an indie and to the plight of marginalized artists everywhere but the main problem facing the global music industry is that the music being produced and distributed is too expensive and not well made. quality acts get the shelf while yawn gets promoted.

Ben, SF, eeuu

I'd much rather pay the musicians directly at a live concert than simply funnel money into record companies pockets, all these fat cats are just whinging because they see the 'control' of the music business slipping away.

the more they tighten their grip more will slip through their fingers

Rob, Wallasey,

Downloads should be cheaper and more money should go to the artists using this method. It's very annoying to pay almost the same for a computer file as a CD. CDs should also be cheaper. I really don't want to fund the coke habits of record label salesman bosses with no music interest any longer!

Matt, Southampton, England

Dowloading music enhances the culture of everybody. Thanks to these music dowloads we can listen to many different musicians and decide what we like or not. The music industry should find another ways of income ahead of selling records, such as marketing, live performances, etc.

Carlos, Castellón, España

This misses the point. Whether copying with a microphone in front of the radio, or tape to tape, or downloading, copying music has always been with us. It is not going to kill off music.

People now choose whether to spend their money on music, DVD's, computers, games, etc. Rise to the challenge!

Richard, Surrey, UK

I'm in agreement with the article totally..anybody that want music for free is a thief..every occupation from street sweeper to a doctor want their pay when they work..so do musician..so stop stealing and go buy..if you all were landlords none of you would allow your tenants to live free..go buy..

derrick brown, kingston, jamaica.w.i

the music and film industry's are the problem, why is it every time i buy ether music or a film, i am then forced to watch a stupid nock off nigle film telling me how bad it is to steel, when i am the one paying!

Unless the industry changes its whys then it will die and it should!

MR W Jones, Liverpool, England

That' true it's a theft... Unfortunately (!?) it barely sounds that artists are the victims. Buoyant excecutives of multinational do not inspire compassion or reflections on who will suffer the lost. Most of the public see the hardship faced by musicians artists exploited by their companies.

Fuchs Charles, Florence, Italy

Illegal downloading won't kill music. Music was around for 1000s of years before copyright was invented and will survive without it.
I am a carpenter but I don't get a royalty each time someone opens a door I fitted. The music industry is greedy.

James Darling, London,

would you go into a record shop, take an album and run off with it?
No.
So how does it become right when it's in a digital format? It doesn't. It's still illegal.

illegal downloads and alot of these comments just go to show the depth of the disgusting greed of the human race.

Irwin, Eastbourne,

I agree, music downloading is not going to kill music. It will actually save it if you really think about it. Music, until recently was a free art. It is going to come back to that and scare away the ones in it just for money. If we take out the money factor, only quality will remain....

Will, Madrid, Spain

"I am writing this in my private capacity as a songwriter, performer and label owner"

Try writing as a consumer then you might see things differently!

Scott, London,

The only thing that will kill the music industry is its own greed.
Music sharing - as with cassettes in the 70's - is best free PR that any artist can get. Anyway surely music is an art not an industry!

Mark Laulund, London,

Why do people illegally download music? Because downloading certain music is illegal. Make it legal, and people will legally download music. Downloading music for free is not like downloading air: there's a limited amount of air out there; me downloading music doesn't affect others doing so.

Jaime Solis, Oviedo, Spain

Your statement "Why do people illegally download music? Because they can." is wrong.
People download because they don't want to spend the money and will go through the hassle of finding it. This gets them hooked on music.
Later on in life when they can afford to buy, they do. P2P encourages sales.

Tony, London, UK

You can't avoid free music, itunes is just a staging post to this ultimate end. The music industry will just have to adapt.

Live music is the way forward.

Owen, London, UK

I don't understand why people can't see that here is yet another protectionist measure for the labels trying to save themselves and pretending to do it for musicians. AND the labels get to write the rules and police them too? I would hope not!

Richard, Harrogate, N. Yorkshire

When CDs replaced tapes could we upgrade the music we lost for a nominal price? no. When our 'indestructable' CDs won't play after a little scratch can we replace them? no. Do we care if these fat cats go out of business? no.

Dave, London,

I have many tracks that I purchased originally as 45's (singles)
These same tracks were included in various albums purchased from shops and at record fairs in Cassette, LP and CD formats over the years. If I now download these for free do I go from music lover to common thief?

Mark, Blandford, UK

The music industry has been ripping people of for years with many complaints about prices , nothing happened, I bought Cds and DVDs from USA and including postage were still cheaper than UK.,so to see them being ripped off is a pleasure.

Dave Madley, Alicante, Spain

Live performance is where musicians should earn their money just as it was 1000 years ago. I see several live concerts per month and many artists I go and see are a direct result of hearing 'illegal' downloads. If artists dont (or aren't good enough to) do live performances then too bad.

Leal , London, UK

The real problem facing the music biz is that there are no decent legal alternatives. Take DRM for example, why would anyone buy music that is shackled with DRM and subject to the whims of the company that owns the authorisation server? Where are the legal recommendation services like Pandora?

Rich_R, Gloucester,

The same thing was said about reel-to-reel tape recorders, then it was repeated was repeated about cassette recorders...and guess what, the music still rolls on and the artists still make money. The only people who are probably not making as big a killing as they used to are the recording companies

Thomas, Alicante, Spain

Back in the 1960's I recorded Alan Freeman's Pick of the Pops every Sunday afternoon.
I recorded everything and never once bought a record.
Since then the Beatles made millions, The Rolling Stones made millions, etc, etc.
I don't see any musicians starving - so why outlaw downloading music

GJB, Slough, Berkshire

Are you top posters able to read? Well said this man. I wonder where radiohead would be without millions of pounds of investment from EMI over a decade. Still, they go no creative control did they - oh hold on, they did.

Makes me so angry that people think most income comes from touring. Grr.

jamie Collinson, london, UK

Good music will survive whatever the market or whatever the medium. It's bad music that might suffer and who cares about that. If the record industry are so desperate to survive then they need to use a different technology that doesn't integrate with off-the-shelf PCs.

Mark, Hull, UK

Rubbish.

What about the Arctic Monkey's music being posted online well before the release of there huge selling album?

What about the Radiohead album released online that you could pay 1p for, it's there biggest selling album?

Bands have always made there money via touring/live acts!!!

Andrew Towell, Hartlepool, England, UK

The music biz must adapt it's biz model to match consumer expectations, a whole generation have embraced the culture of free.
The music biz should have embraced napster back when they had the chance and monitized it, they didn't.
£10 a month ISP driven unlimited music tax seems the way to go.

Lee, Newcastle, UK

Ever since the first caveman sang the first song, his fellow 'musician' copied him. Copying is inextricably buried in every act of musical creation, from Bach to Lizst to the Stones and hip-hop. Lawyer's demand for payment for 'sampling' is anti-music, and anticreative.

Michael Taylor, Malton,

MB has a vested interest to support draconian interference with the web. Sorry but the music business has changed for ever. It will go on and will find ways of making money, even new ways of ripping off the public and the artists as it has for years but now we, the public, have a tool to set a limit

mike gee, bournemouth, uk

.... As we can see now more and more fresh talents make their coming out on youtube. Are they paid_? No. Are they any good? Well still better than Jessica Simpson or B. Spears etcetc. Music will revert to the status of Art and get rid of its Industry dimension. Music industry is dead. Thank the Web

Will, Madrid, Spain

The Music Industry as we've known it is, thankfully, dead. If any remnant is to survive then a double-quick establishment of an online "cloud" containing ALL music from EVERY label EVER released with a recurring, reasonably-priced subscription charge might save it a few scraps for the future!

Rowg, London, UK

Illegal downloading won't kill music. Mike, you might not realise this, but music didn't start in the sixties. People have been making music for thousands of years, and only in the past few decades has recording become the main source of income for a tiny number of musicians.

Ben, Karlovy Vary,

What we need is a change in the bussiness model - Artists make more from live performances than from records unless thay are pop idols. Look at the recorded music as an advert for the live performance. Ok, we would see less one hit wonders, but there would be more sustained career musicians perhaps?

LDC, Htown, NZ

Rubbish. Most of the stuff the music industry puts out is poor standard music. Take for example the fact that the Mr Blobby song went to no. one a few years ago - or the 'tele tubbies'. It has nothing to do with real music and everything to do with making a quick buck. Real musicians will come throu

Simon, York, Enlgand

Only today I ordered three CDs online, all were artists that I would not have heard had I not illegally downloaded them in the first place. For me, and for many of my friends who no longer listen to rubbish radio or watch music tv channels, downloading is the ultimate "try before you buy".

Tony, St Albans, UK

If I am an electrician & I put a light switch in your home. I expect you to pay me -- once. I don't expect to get paid every time you turn the switch on. Music should be the same--a one time payment for an album. It's the record companies who started this royalties thing & now they are crying.

Steve Smith, Kanchanaburi, Thailand

I pay for my music on itunes, some of the artists don't have or need a record company and most of the money goes to them.
CDs polute the environment, their high risk business can create misery, downloads are cheap and cheerful and I don't begrudge giving a small amount to support the artist.

Jake Lara, Bath , Britain

Yeah what are Record companys on , In the 80s me and my mates used to copy tapes on two deck players , and there was nothing they could do about it, we just put tape of the secuirty tab, remember that.

Im sorry Elton john can't put diamonds on his cats neck

poor 1 rich 0

Sean Mclean , motherwell, Scotland

I dont mind paying for music, but why must it be so expensive?

Johnny, Coleraine,

If I could make a free copy of a loaf of bread without destroying the original one, then I would have solved the world's food problems and it would be a wonderful day.

The attempts to equate copyright violation with theft are tiresome and nothing more than clever marketing.

Mark, melbourne,

It's about time songwriters and musicians fought more aggressively for their right to survive. The kind of rampant digital theft that so-called "music fans" have engaged in really damages creative people and would not be tolerated in any other business. Music isn't free, nor should it ever be.

Mike, Murfreesboro, USA

Another music industry "luvvy" with the usual tired old claim to have come up the hard way, and who now laments the loss of his gravy train. Welcome back to the real world Mr Batt.

Pfffill, Shanghai, China

Record companies have been charging exorborant prices for their products for 50 or more years. Musicians, today, make more money from live gigs than record sales. Internet downloading has been proven to increase CD sales. If you made your CDs cheaper, there would be little reaon to download.

Steve, Kanchanaburi, Thailand