Digital Streets

The RIAA is become notorious for its lawsuits and hunting down all the illegal downloading and ripping of music on the internet.  Instead of combating piracy using fear tactics and lawsuits, the music industry should reexamine its strategies for distributing music in the first place.  The music industry has set itself up to be “victims� of piracy due to continually overcharging consumers for CD’s.  They even admitted to the practice but cleared their “consciences� by giving consumers $20 to make up for it in exchange for never being bothered by it again.  Yet they still continue the practice.  So the consumer gets to pay too much for a disc of music with no frills.  I remember back in the days of LP’s, where the consumer got posters, special inserts, information about the band, etc.  You got more than just the music, you were rewarded in a way for purchasing the item.  Today’s CD’s are blandly packaged with little to offer the consumer.  You could download the music and have the same thing.  If that is the way the music industry wants to package their product, that’s fine.  But if they are going to do that, why not embrace today’s technology and start a massive distribution through music downloads.  Charge the music lovers less for the product and thereby relieve the need to pirate music because one is tired of being ripped off.  Better yet utilize the internet but also revamp the packaging of CD’s and offer the consumer a little more for their money.  Give them a reason to be proud of the purchase they made.  Every other business in America has had to change its way of attracting consumers.  The music industry needs to do this as well.  They are spending a lot of money and time in their quest to stop music piracy, however the marketing nightmare that they are creating is causing a great deal of damage to the customer base.  It is a proven fact that businesses that fail to change with the times will surely die.  If the RIAA doesn’t alter its course, an opportunity will be taken by someone at sometime and the music industry as we know it will be gone.