Music Industry Exec Defends Some File Sharing

from the finding-the-balance dept

Coming just as the head of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is claiming that the recording industry needs a "zero tolerance" attitude on file sharing, a 30-year veteran of the music industry is opening his mind to the possibilities and admitting that file sharing appears to have some benefits to the industry. Andy Taylor, who heads the Sanctuary Group, a company that seems to do a variety of things in the music industry including representing various artists and record labels, was quoted saying: "Sharing music is not necessarily a bad thing." He points out that it's a good way for people to investigate what's out there, figure out what they like, and then go and buy it. "They (teenagers) don't have the money, so they will only spend what money they have on something they really, really care about." Fairly stunning to hear this from a recording industry exec. However, he doesn't seem to fully get it. He still complains about "those who have no intention ever of spending money on music," saying that they're the real pirates. They're not, though. If they have no intention of ever spending any money on music than they're certainly not taking away any money from the industry. The industry wouldn't have gotten it either way. In fact, by letting those people listen to music, it's possible that the industry can change those listeners' minds. In listening to the free music, those who had no intention of spending may find certain musicians interesting enough to want to go out and see them, for instance.

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