Price-Fixing Settlement Checks in the Mail

toastyman writes "Remember the Music Industry $67m settlement from way back in 2002? Seven months later than planned, your $13.86 check is finally on its way. In addition to the cash settlement, the defendants in the suit are also giving 5.6 million CD's to educational programs."

Comments

What the heck?

[TimTurnip]

They're donating millions of CD's for educational purposes?

I'd love to see what those albums are, and what their educational value truly is. Unless they're delivering symphony recordings and classical masterpieces for a music class, I can't see how that's an advantage for consumer me.

At least when MS donated OS licenses and things, one could argue that Windows machines can actually facilitate learning in all sorts of areas (let the MS flaming begin). This sounds like a cop out to me. Blah.

By the way..

[XaXXon]

These CDs? Yeah, they're each worth $5,000 USD.

I hate the way people can get away with giving away "content" at inflated prices. If they gave away $5.6M in MEDIA costs of CDs to educational entities, I'd feel like they were punished. This is like MS giving away a bunch of software.

I've written this many times before, but it's not a punishment/loss of revenue if there was never any money in the first place. If the CD's cost $.10 each for them to make (made that number up, but it seems reasonable), then it really cost them $560K. A large number, but not nearly as large s 5.6M. If they had to REFUND $5.6M back to educational groups that had purchased CDs, that would be the way to really punish them.

This is just like MS offering to give a bunch of money's worth of software to schools. It doesn't cost 'em anything to give stuff to a place that would have never bought it in the first place, since initial R&D is the cost, and that's constant. Distribution is a trivial cost at the end.

Priceless

[rlp]

Personally, I plan to take my $13.86 check and give the money to the EFF.

A complete rip-off

[sdo1]

Do yourselves a favor and donate your refund to the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Personally, a check that small is a slap in the face. They did nothing to account for the number of CDs purchased during the time in question. I checked. I added well over 200 CDs to my collection during that time. Yet I get the same amount back as someone who bought just a few.

-S

Re:...giving 5.6 million CD's to educational progr

[phillymjs]

Why not sell those 5.6 million cds and give the profit to educational programs instead?

For the same reason that Microsoft gives $xM worth of free software whenever possible to settle their lawsuits:

It's not a "real" penalty, it just looks like one to the rubes who don't realize that each physical software package/music CD costs practically nothing to produce, but is counted at its full retail value when given away.

Giving away profits as penalty for corporate wrongdoing? In George W. Bush's America? Ha!

~Philly

give it to an unsigned musician!

[rjnagle]

I know any money is helpful, but consider that the overwhelming majority of musicians are not signed and have no hope of securing a record deal. And that iTunes (if they can get signed on), only compensates them about 11% or so.

Here's a better idea. Look at all those musicians who let you download music legally and dash them an email, saying I want to give the money to you as a way of saying thanks for being so generous and talented.

To love the music, you must share the music. Sharethemusicday .

A drop in the bucket...

[JWG]

...not to sound like michael moore, but this corporate crime thing really bothers me. this settlement adds up to a drop in the bucket for the recording companies. if corporations are allowed to be treated like individuals, so that no individual within the company is ever held responsible, then we should be able to punish corporations like individuals. legally control their business practises... freeze wages, firing, and take a percentage of their profits.

Re:Wonderful!

[tambo]

That mean, naughty music industry duped you into buying all those CDs - you had not the will power to say no.

What part of "price fixing" don't you understand?

This isn't some weird products liability case (e.g., you McDonald's analogy.) This is a case about the RIAA using its monopoly power over the CD market to set an arbitrarily high price of CDs. It's what happens in the absence of competition. (Another consequence is that the RIAA can abuse its customers and treat us all like scoundrels, without fear of us taking our business to a competitor.)

This crime was complete when the first CD was offered for sale at $20 - even before it was purchased. So your sarcasm is poorly aimed.

David Stein

Re:YIPPY

[Golias]

Really? Every CD at my local Best Buy in the Twin Cities is $13 - $18, apart from a handful of "bargain" titles. At record stores, it's even worse.

As far as I've seen, CD prices are exactly where they were a year ago, if not slightly higher. Anybody who thought this lawsuit would accomplish anything other than making a few scumwad lawyers rich was a naive fool.

This is why I never participate in class-action lawsuits unless I was actually wronged in some way. Accepting my money for an overpriced item I choose to buy of my own free will is not something I should be able to sue you for.