Stop RIAA Lawsuits coalition
Rezizta | 18.05.2004 11:07
------------Soon coming to a country you live in ----------
The Stop RIAA Lawsuits Coalition is a group of 192 websites (and growing) that have come together to denounce the record industry's filesharing lawsuits and to call for a boycott of major label music. Read our press release announcing the boycott.
What are the RIAA Lawsuits?
On September 8, the major record labels sued 261 music fans and customers for using filesharing programs. These lawsuits are a desperate act by a failing industry. There is little evidence that filesharing has anything to do with the decline in record sales over the past three years and the record industry's effort to eliminate filesharing has been a pathetic attempt to slow innovation so they can continue to force bad deals on musicians and music fans. On Friday, October 17, the RIAA sent letters to 200 more families demanding that they pay settlement costs or face lawsuits.
The vast majority of those sued are families with young children. Many of these people are big music fans who've bought hundreds of CDs from the same record labels that are now attacking their families. For most, mounting a legal defense against 5 corporate giants is out of the question, and the $3,000-$10,000 cost of settling the lawsuit presents an enormous financial burden. The cost of settling will force many families into debt.
Why Boycott?
The major record labels think they can push Americans back into record stores by financially attacking families. Unless we speak up now, these lawsuits will continue. We need to tell the major labels that their new strategy of bullying families is wrong and must end. Companies like these don't pay any attention to the public voice until it starts costing them sales. With this boycott, we can send a strong message in language the major labels will understand: "Stop suing families, or you'll start losing customers."
What Else Can We Do?
This is not a passive boycott: it's a perfect opportunity to discover great independent music. Long before the major labels started bullying families, they've bullied independent labels by locking them out of radio. These labels give musicians a much better deal and some of the best American music is on independent labels. Independent label CDs are cheaper and when you buy a CD your money actually goes to the musicians (with major labels, it usually doesn't). Whichever genres you prefer, there's an indie label for you. Take a look at our list on the left for some places to start.
On September 8, the major record labels sued 261 music fans and customers for using filesharing programs. These lawsuits are a desperate act by a failing industry. There is little evidence that filesharing has anything to do with the decline in record sales over the past three years and the record industry's effort to eliminate filesharing has been a pathetic attempt to slow innovation so they can continue to force bad deals on musicians and music fans. On Friday, October 17, the RIAA sent letters to 200 more families demanding that they pay settlement costs or face lawsuits.
The vast majority of those sued are families with young children. Many of these people are big music fans who've bought hundreds of CDs from the same record labels that are now attacking their families. For most, mounting a legal defense against 5 corporate giants is out of the question, and the $3,000-$10,000 cost of settling the lawsuit presents an enormous financial burden. The cost of settling will force many families into debt.
Why Boycott?
The major record labels think they can push Americans back into record stores by financially attacking families. Unless we speak up now, these lawsuits will continue. We need to tell the major labels that their new strategy of bullying families is wrong and must end. Companies like these don't pay any attention to the public voice until it starts costing them sales. With this boycott, we can send a strong message in language the major labels will understand: "Stop suing families, or you'll start losing customers."
What Else Can We Do?
This is not a passive boycott: it's a perfect opportunity to discover great independent music. Long before the major labels started bullying families, they've bullied independent labels by locking them out of radio. These labels give musicians a much better deal and some of the best American music is on independent labels. Independent label CDs are cheaper and when you buy a CD your money actually goes to the musicians (with major labels, it usually doesn't). Whichever genres you prefer, there's an indie label for you. Take a look at our list on the left for some places to start.
Rezizta
Homepage:
http://www.stopriaalawsuits.com/index1.html