Word: mp3s
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...result, MP3s are an easy way for the typical Internet user to gain free access to their favorite music. Scores of Internet sites offer their visitors the opportunity to download free MP3 players, and thousands more make a wide range of current recordings available...
...growing popularity of MP3s has not gone unnoticed by the music industry. Major recording labels like Sony and Capitol are crying foul, claiming that rampant disregard for copyright laws by hundreds of Web sites which illegally post pirated tracks threatens to grossly undercut profits. Because MP3 technology is so advanced, it is fairly simple for anyone with the proper equipment to condense and make available whole CDs for free distribution. And with the advent of portable MP3 players now offered for about $200 by seven different companies, industry doomsayers are predicting the total financial ruin of music companies worldwide...
...despite current obstacles to procuring MP3s, the industry believes that improvements in technology will make the threat of rampant piracy a reality. In retaliation, they have concocted a series of lawsuits against anyone and everyone who could by some remote chance be held responsible for the trend. Targets include specific sites, MP3 manufacturers and even the engineers who originally created MP3 technology...
...most recent (and possibly most absurd) move against MP3s was taken last month by Sightsound.com, who threatened MP3.com with a lawsuit asserting that Sightsound held patents which control "among other things, the sale of audio or video recordings in download fashion over the Internet." Such a grandiose claim is comparable to Random House stating that they have the exclusive rights to the process of printing up and distributing written material...
...MP3s and the Internet can empower bands to take back control over their music. Countless bigname groups are eager to take advantage of the opportunity; for example the Beastie Boys took it upon themselves to make available live tracks and non-copyrighted music to promote their latest album, Hello Nasty. Garbage and Alanis Morrisette have been known to release special rare cuts exclusively in MP3 format. They Might Be Giants has even made entire albums available online. Smaller, independent bands have also embraced MP3s as a means for building a fan base and getting their music recognized. The London-Based...