Stephen Witt: ‘Music piracy is illegal – but morally, is it wrong?’

Kitty Empire talks to Stephen Witt about his eagerly awaited book charting the rise of the MP3 file, the online pirates who exploited it and the record industry that ignored its cultural impact until it was far too lateExtract: Going for a song: the hidden history of music piracy How Music Got Free is in essence the gripping tale of three men: Karlheinz Brandenburg, the German scientist whose lab cobbled together the MP3; Doug Morris, the old-school record company executive who presided over the rap boom and began the fight-back against piracy; and Bennie Lydell “Dell” Glover, the North Carolina CD pressing plant worker, whose light fingers and computer skills singlehandedly led to a haemorrhage of A-list rock and hip-hop releases – Eminem, Kanye West, Queens of the Stone Age, Björk – being freely available on the internet two weeks before release.The three men never met, but Witt reveals how their lives overlapped and irrevocably changed those of anyone who listens to music. Brandenburg’s genius lay in shrinking sound files down so that they could easily be sent over the internet, back when most files were huge and modems still dialled up. Owing to the bitter internecine rivalries within acoustic engineering, no one recognised the scope of Brandenburg’s technology; the inferior MP2 kept winning industry accolades and commercial applications. Universal executive Morris presided over an industry rich from the obscene profits generated by CD sales, until the secretive... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-06-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #cd sales #balance sheets

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Stephen Witt: ‘Music piracy is illegal – but morally, is it wrong?’'


Stephen Witt: ‘Music piracy is illegal – but morally, is it wrong?’

Kitty Empire talks to Stephen Witt about his eagerly awaited book charting the rise of the MP3 file, the online pirates who exploited it and the record industry that ignored its cultural impact until it was far too lateExtract: Going for a song: the hidden history of music piracy How Music Got... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-06-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #cd sales #balance sheets


Remembering Stephen Rubin, with an Evening of Words and Music

About 200 friends attended a memorial service on Thursday evening at New York’s Metropolitan Club to celebrate the memory of the influential publisher and noted opera buff, who died last October. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-01 05:00:00 UTC ]
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'Morally wrong' unpaid internships give trade 'poor reputation'

The publication of new guidelines on internships has been hailed as a “very positive” step in improving accessibility and diversity in the industry, while figures in the trade have slammed unpaid work as "morally wrong" and of earning the industry a "poor reputation". Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2017-08-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cox Communications sued by two music publishers over piracy

Two music publishers - BMG Rights Management LLC and Round Hill Music LP – have sued Atlanta-based Cox Communications Inc., claiming that Cox deliberately turns a blind eye to illegal downloading by its subscribers. BMG and Round Hill, each of which controls the publishing rights to a number of... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal

[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2014-11-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Is Amazon morally wrong but legally right?

Amazon's policies may be unkind to many in the book industry, but that doesn't make them illegal. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jeremy Denk’s Memoir Features Music, Love and More Music

In “Every Good Boy Does Fine,” the concert pianist recalls his artistic and erotic awakening. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-03-24 15:00:06 UTC ]
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Bob Dylan's entire music catalogue bought by Universal Music

Bob Dylan's entire catalogue of songs, one of the great treasures in music history, has been acquired by Universal Music Publishing Group for an undisclosed sum.  Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2020-12-07 16:53:36 UTC ]
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Peloton told it can't countersue music publishers over high workout music prices

Peloton has failed to convince the court that the National Music Publishers Association violated federal antitrust laws. If you'll recall, the NMPA sued Peloton in early 2019, accusing it of using songs in its workout videos without obtaining the pro... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2020-01-30 13:20:00 UTC ]
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Facebook Harmonized With Global Music Rights, HFA/Rumblefish, Kobalt Music Publishing

Music continued to fill the air in Menlo Park, Calif., as Facebook announced three new partnerships with music publishers, coming on the heels of its deal with Sony/ATV earlier this week and its pact with Universal Music Group, inked in December. Facebook head of music business development and... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2018-01-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book about politics and pop music wins Penderyn Music Book Prize

Daniel Rachel's book about politics and pop music "coming together for the first time in Britain's musical history" has won the 2017 Penderyn Music Book Prize. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2017-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Don’t ask what’s wrong with the reader, what's wrong with the books?': writing for readers with dyslexia

From tinting their pages yellow to redesigning fonts, publisher Barrington Stoke is leading the way in dyslexia-friendly books. They and their authors – including Meg Rosoff and Anthony McGowan – explain the practicalitiesMainstream understanding of dyslexia has come a long way from the days... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-10-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Future of Music: U.S. to Review Rules Covering Streaming Music Fees

Lobbyists for the music industry and streaming music services are gearing up to battle one another after the Justice Department said it will review decades-old agreements that govern songwriter royalties.The review, which follows court battles between rights holders and Pandora internet radio,... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2014-06-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Legislative Attacks on State Library Associations are Dangerous—and Illegal

EveryLibrary's John Chrastka argues that the legislative attacks on the work of library associations, if allowed to stand, could undermine the foundation of all professional association activities and destabilize the collaborative networks vital to any profession. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-15 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Piracy in Italy: Study Shows Book Industry Losing €705 Million Annually

Book piracy is costing the Italian book market more than a quarter of its overall value, according to a study commissioned by the AIE. The post Piracy in Italy: Study Shows Book Industry Losing €705 Million Annually appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-03-08 22:07:51 UTC ]
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How to save papers, photos, and analog music digitally

Do you, like me, have paper documents that have long since been scanned and processed, records or music cassettes that you would like to listen to on your mobile phone, and photo prints that are planned for a digital photo book? Then you will appreciate the two-step instructions in... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2024-03-08 14:00:00 UTC ]
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What Kendrick Lamar’s Pulitzer Win Meant For American Music

When Nas described himself as the “most critically acclaimed Pulitzer Prize winner / Best storyteller / Thug narrator / My styles greater” on his song “Hate Me Now” (1999), he was foretelling something monumental on the horizon. The Pulitzer Prize for Music is considered one of the nation’s most... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-21 09:55:55 UTC ]
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Stephen Blake Mettee, Book Business Entrepreneur, Dies at 76

Stephen Blake Mettee died from a heart attack while snorkeling in the Galapagos Islands on November 18. A serial entrepreneur across many sectors, Mettee founded independent publisher Quill Driver Books in 1994 and Hummingbird Digital Media, a hybrid e-book distributing/retailing company, in 2015. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-05 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Stephen Strang: Prophecy, Politics, and Publishing

The evangelical publisher atop Charisma Media sees a big audience for books and broadcasts that speak of God's 'everyday involvement in human life.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-01-17 05:00:00 UTC ]
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