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Subject:Re: OT: Music (not so far OT as it was) From:Arlen -dot- P -dot- Walker -at- jci -dot- com To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com Date:Mon, 31 Jul 2000 07:45:18 -0500
>Now if we could just figure out a way to turn things around and make
>sure that the artist/writer/creator makes the money instead of the
>recording/publishing industry or the guys who dream up the technological
>means to get around that whole pesky copyright and spending money thing.
I think it gets down to a question of value. We value our work at x, the
the audience values it at y. If x<y, the audience (for the most part)
doesn't mind paying for it, and no (or few) extra measures need be taken.
But the higher x is in relation to y, the greater the motivation is for the
audience to find its way past any protective measures we take.
The recording industry is struggling with that right now. I remember Garth
Brooks once saying he didn't blame anyone for buying a used CD, because he
wouldn't pay the current asking price for some of the CDs out there,
himself. Then, when the price of *his* CDs went up, he sued record stores
to prevent them from carrying used CDs if they also sold new copies of his
CD. In trying to maximize profits, the industry has made piracy into almost
a badge of honor.
It's uncomfortable to realize this, but the true valuation of anything we
do isn't ours to control. In the final analysis, it rests with our
customers.
That ties into so many of the debates we've had on this list over the years
about incompetant writers, certification programs, and becoming a
profession.
We can posture and pronounce and pontificate all we want to about the value
of our contributions and how much we're worth. But the bottom line is our
work is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. We can control
the quality of it, we can control our attitude toward it. We can control a
great deal of things about our work. But we can't control that.
Have fun,
Arlen
Chief Managing Director In Charge, Department of Redundancy Department
DNRC 224
Arlen -dot- P -dot- Walker -at- JCI -dot- Com
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In God we trust; all others must provide data.
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Opinions expressed are mine and mine alone.
If JCI had an opinion on this, they'd hire someone else to deliver it.
