The music industry would like us to think that when we “buy” a CD, what we’re actually buying is a limited-use licence to listen to that particular music, conveniently packaged with a plastic disk containing the music. We’re allowed to make “backup” or personal use tapes or MP3s of the music (well, they’d really rather we didn’t, but since the technology to do it exists, and there’s that pesky backup/personal use clause in copyright law, it’s hard for them to stop us – but they’re trying) but we’re not allowed to play the music publically for profit, or make copies and give them away. Fine, this makes sense to me so far.
But what if that disk gets scratched or damaged by the sun? Or what if you own an LP and you’d like to convert it to a CD? Your only option currently is to repurchase the CD, or “steal” the MP3s. What if suddenly technology changes and music comes on a solid-state memory chip of some sort – you’re going to be asked to repurchase that. In my opinion, this is where the licencing argument breaks down. Failing some other certificate or licence, he damaged or old format plastic should be viewed as my “proof of purchase/proof of licence” showing that I indeed have rights to a single copy of said material – and if I need to replace the plastic it came on, I should be able to do that at any record store for a nominal price ($5 or less sounds appropriate to me for materials and labor and overhead). I’ve got a stack of LP albums, some of which I’d really prefer to have on CD (which I would then convert to MP3, of course, keeping the CD as a backup). The nice thing about downloaded (purchased) MP3s is you never have to do this (till that technology becomes obsolete); but by the same token they have to keep track (in a database) of who has what licences. By the same token, if a friend has an LP of a particular album, it should be perfectly legal to give that friend a copy of the MP3s (of the exact same album, of course) – because she is licenced for it, and it’s for her personal use.
The same arguments should be applied to books, magazines, newspapers, movies.
The source of the problem is of course the dichotomy of corporations wanting to maximize profits, versus people wanting something for nothing – and both capatalizing on the fact that this issue is unclear. I think the best solution (for the moment) is for someone to create a very simple legal media licence (backed up by more specific legalese if necessary) that explains what everyone’s rights are. Heck, make it retroactive! If you haven’t purchased (and have physical or electronic proof of) a licence for media, you aren’t allowed to have any copies of it, anywhere. If you HAVE purchased it, you are allowed to use it as specified, no more, no less.
Update (020614.1839) Even more absurd: now they want to charge a royalty on USED CDs! I say fine, as long as we get a full rebate for the royalty we paid on buying it new (nearly the entire price of the CD).
Instead, just make it clear that when you sell a CD you lose all right to using the music that was contained on the CD – since the CD _is_ the (manefestation of the) licence. Hey – that’s basically what happens now: the original buyer might get a few dollars for the CD for which they paid $15.