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Karolis Jurgelevicius Professor Flom WRD 104-335 May 16, 2013 Piracy in the Digital Seas and the Effects it has on the Music Industry Music has been constantly changing and shifting since human beings have been capable of creating music. However, the 20th century has given birth to new outlets and technology that people have used to create innumerable genres of music. The problem with new technology is that there will always be conflict with what has always been considered traditional. The rise of the internet has been a controversial topic in the music industry since piracy first became a problem in the late 1990s. Since then people all around the world have been able to access music due to the limitless opportunities piracy offers. Whether the internet has had a positive effect to the music industry is a widely debated topic in various discourse communities. It allows instant access to music outside of the listeners region and has been shown to influence the way music is made and distributed. In addition, the internet has made piracy easily accessible to anyone with a decent connection and has offered individuals options that would not have been available to them due to regional restrictions. This has left the dominating American music industry in a bad spot due to individuals stealing digital music. Although piracy is harming the music industry, it gives record company executives and musicians incentive to bring about change in the music industry.

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Freedman, Des. "Managing Pirate Culture: Corporate Responses To Peer-To-Peer Networking." JMM: The International Journal On Media Management 5.3 (2003): 173-179. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 27 Apr. 2013. The article Managing Pirate Culture: Corporate Responses to Peer-to-Peer Networking by Freedman gives the reader a detailed report of how piracy affects the music industry negatively, and what steps the record companies are taking to combat piracy. Although record company executives believe that digital downloaders are the cause for such a decline in music sales, it is evident that there are other factors that go into it such as lack of innovation and changing economic tides. Freedman claims that although record companies are trying to adapt to this changing environment by creating new services such as Spotify, they are still a step behind P2P sites in terms of flexibility offered by P2P networks. The author of this article utilizes qualitative methods by interviewing certain executives from some of the largest record companies in the world. It is important to know what the executives think about the failing music industry to gain insight into what the individuals who run the industry think about the issue and what they plan on doing to fix it. The executives can offer a different perspective compared to the users of peer-to-peer networks. I plan on using this article to describe the steps record companies are taking to reduce piracy and which are most effective in converting pirates over to paying customers.

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Janssens, Jelle, Stijn Vandaele, and Tom Vander Beken. "The Music Industry On (The) Line? Surviving Music Piracy In A Digital Era." European Journal Of Crime, Criminal Law & Criminal Justice 17.2 (2009): 77-96. Academic Search Complete. Web. 15 May 2013. Janssens, Vandaele, and Vander Beken approach the topic of piracy in the music industry from a criminal law standpoint. The authors discuss how piracy has harmed the music industry due to the introduction of CD-rs and .MP3 file formats in digital music. In addition they respond to organized crime getting involved in music and the negative effect it has on physical sales of CDs. The authors believe that piracy is extremely detrimental due to the illegal opportunities it offers individuals that work out of the darker parts of society such as organized crime. The authors utilize qualitative research methods when discussing piracy in their article. The predominant method used by the authors is examining others research studies and the conclusions they have reached. I plan on using this article to discuss how organized crime got involved in pirating music and the negative effect it has had on sales. In addition, I plan on covering the insight the authors offer regarding the issues CD-rs offer and how the .MP3 file format made the internet lethal to the music industry.

Koebler, Jason. "Report: Album Piracy May Help Musicians Sell." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 29 May 2012. Web. 28 Apr. 2013. Koebler brings up an interesting result of piracy in his article Album Piracy May Help Musicians Sell. Koebler states that albums that are released digitally before their actual release date sell more copies. This could be a method used by record companies to increase sales in a

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time when sales are low. Although this method damages the record industry in the long term, Koebler claims that it might be useful to increase sales short term. Koebler uses qualitative methods because he quotes some individuals who have conducted studies on the effects of piracy before an album is released and the resulting sales. I intend on using this article to show that there is a short term solution to the negative effect of piracy in the record industry. Record companies could utilize this new information to boost sales by pre releasing albums while outside factors improve to the point that more effective methods could be implemented.

Pfanner, Eric. "Music Industry Braces for the Unthinkable." The New York Times. The New York Times, 24 Jan. 2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2013. Pfanners article discusses how the major record companies approach piracy in this day and age. The article points out that currently the music industry is failing due to piracy. Although the industry is failing, some executives are optimistic about the future. Stricter punishments for copyright infringements have shown an increase in sales, which can be utilized as long as there is international cooperation. Alternatively, online subscription based services can curb piracy by allowing users to stream music rather than illegally downloading it. Pfanner claims that executives are looking for new options to combat piracy, which might prove successful if utilized properly. This article utilizes qualitative methods by interviewing executives of major record labels. These executives show their concern for the industry from a top down perspective. I intend on using this article to show how the executives of these major labels are planning on

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approaching the issue of piracy in the future. The interviews of the executives can also give an opposing viewpoint compared to the artists who are under these labels, or even the individuals who pirate music. Sandulli, Francesco D., and Samuel Martn-Barbero. "99 Cents Per Song: A Fair Price For Digital Music? The Effects Of Music Industry Strategies To Raise The Willingness To Pay By P2P Users." Journal Of Website Promotion 2.3/4 (2006): 3-15. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 21 Apr. 2013. The article 99 Cents Per Song: A Fair Price For Digital Music? discusses if paying 99 cents for a song is fair to consumers, and why some individuals choose piracy over legal alternatives. Sandulli and Martin-Barbero show through research that individuals who listen to digital music want to receive more than just a song when they pay 99 cents, and that the current price is not fair to pay. The authors approach different methods used by the music industry to curb piracy, and how peer-to-peer users respond based on these methods. Some of these methods include legal action against the P2P users, educational campaigns, and pollution of P2P data. The authors argue that negative approaches to piracy such as legal action is much less effective than educating P2P users or providing users with more value for a digital purchase. The article utilizes quantitative methods because the authors utilize surveys conducted on P2P users and what would turn people over from pirating to legally buying digital music. in their research. They also use qualitative methods by interviewing P2P users to gain insight why they pirate music and what would make them turn to buying music digitally. I plan on using this data to approach the topic of piracy in the music industry and why some people illegally download

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music rather than buy it. Since the authors approach this topic differently, this data could be used to explain the behavior of some P2P users and how to curb piracy.

Upshaw, Danny, and Laurie A. Babin. "Music Downloading: Competing Against Online Piracy." International Journal Of Business & Public Administration 7.1 (2010): 14-26. Business Source Complete. Web. 8 May 2013. Upshaw and Babin bring up the value of digital music in their article Music Downloading: Competing Against Online Piracy. Upshaw and Babin discuss the current efforts taken to prevent illegal digital downloading of music and which methods have been most effective at combating piracy. In addition, the authors discuss what would turn individuals away from pirating music to buying the digital music legally such as increasing the value of the product. They claim that incentives rather than deterrents are more effective at turning pirates over to paying customers and offering more value for the price of a digital download. Upshaw and Babin utilize quantitative research methods to come to their conclusion. They used a survey to gather data such as preferred downloading websites from college aged individuals that listen to music. I intend on using the research provided by Upshaw and Babin to discuss whether deterrents or incentives are more effective at turning over pirates to legally downloading music. In addition, I will utilize the survey results to discuss what incentives appeal to pirates the most.

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Wallace, William. "Authorizing Piracy on the Cyber Seas: An Initiative to Compensate Rights Holders of Sound Recordings by Making Music Free." The George Washington International Law Review 44.1 (2012): 141-72. ProQuest. Web. 27 Apr. 2013. Wallace brings up an interesting idea in his article Authorizing Piracy on the Cyber Seas: An Initiative to Compensate Rights Holders of Sound Recordings by Making Music Free. Wallace claims that since the threat of legal action had little effect on individuals pirating music, there should be a coalition that would monitor digital downloading. Since this coalition of countries and P2P networks could monitor music distributed freely on the internet, more options to gain revenue would arise which would in turn pay the musicians for any lost wages. Wallace utilizes quantitative research methods in his article. His qualitative methods include examining other research studies to form a stronger background for his solution to reduce piracy in the music industry. I intend on using this article as an option to consider when discussing on what to do about piracy.

Young, Sherman, and Steve, Collins. "A View From The Trenches Of Music 2.0." Popular Music And Society 33.3 (2010): 339. RILM Abstracts of Music Literature. Web. 21 Apr. 2013. The article, A View From The Trenches of Music 2.0 offers a unique insight into the effect the internet has on musicians. The authors state that web 2.0, which is what the authors are calling the new options the internet offers to musicians, can be positive for musicians, but negative for music labels. The authors claim that Web 2.0 offers musicians tools that were

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otherwise only available to record companies such as being able to distribute their music themselves and reach out to their listeners by using blogs or social networking websites. Qualitative methods used by the authors include interviews with famous and independent musicians as well as observation. The qualitative methods give the reader an opportunity to hear about web 2.0 from the perspective of the musicians themselves, which are ultimately at the center of the discussion. I plan on using this article to make an argument that the musician/record company executive relationship has to change if the music industry wants to improve.