Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Trent Reznor: YouTube Is Built On the Back Of Stolen Content (theguardian.com)

Posted by msmash on from the serious-accusation dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Singer and record producer Trent Reznor has become the latest artist to attack Google's video service YouTube. "I find YouTube's business to be very disingenuous. It is built on the backs of free, stolen content and that's how they got that big," said Reznor in an interview with Billboard. Reznor was not speaking purely as an artist, however. He is also chief creative officer at Apple Music, the streaming service launched by Apple in 2015, which is one of the key rivals to YouTube in the digital music world. "I think any free-tiered service is not fair. It's making their numbers and getting them a big IPO and it is built on the back of my work and that of my peers. That's how I feel about it. Strongly," said Reznor, widening his criticism to other rivals like Spotify in the process.

13 of 428 comments (clear)

  1. YouTube had an IPO? by hsmith · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well that's news to everyone

  2. The ego... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Never mind all of the car reviews, device reviews, musical gear reviews, prank shoes, and tutorials people watch on there............no, it's all about "his" stolen music.

    1. Re:The ego... by Thanshin · · Score: 5, Funny

      What amazes me most is when Mr. Reznor dresses up as a young female Korean go player and manages to play go at pro level.

      Or when he explains general relativity, as an American Professor , even posing weekly problems about space-time!

      Or when he plays various of the lates videogames at pro skill level, perfectly characterized as a young american!

      Or when he teaches lockpicking opening challenge locks in under a minute!

      That Trent guy is AMAZING!

      (However, now that I know about his amazing transformism ability, I'm a bit scared about Trent's implication in redtube)

    2. Re:The ego... by Wain13001 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The same music he used to literally tell people to go online and steal when he was performing his concerts.

    3. Re: The ego... by mcgrew · · Score: 5, Interesting

      He must hate people like Cory Doctorow and me, who encourage noncommercial sharing of our digital material (but physical copies you have to pay for).

      Not every "content creator" is a selfish, greedy asshole.

      --
      Free Martian Whores!
  3. Aw, Poor Trent... by lobiusmoop · · Score: 5, Funny

    Tori Amos said it best:
    Sometimes, I think Trent just needs a cup of hot chocolate and a blankie.

    --
    "I bless every day that I continue to live, for every day is pure profit."
    1. Re:Aw, Poor Trent... by Jawnn · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It might be too late. Apple got him and now they're telling him he doesn't look ridiculous dressing like a middle-aged Goth.

      OMG, if only I had mod points... Well played, sir, well played indeed.

      And to Trent... Look, I have a great deal of respect for you as an artist, but you are full of shit on this issue. Most of what you call theft is "fair use". The rest of it is unauthorized use, not theft. You were not deprived of something you already possessed. And no, you weren't deprived of any significant amount of revenue either. No, you really were not. You should stop drinking the RIAA kool aid and face the fact that not everybody who ever wanted to listen to 30 seconds of your music is going to pay for it if they have no other option.

      Get over it, princess.

  4. Competitor slags rival product. News at 11. by sjbe · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "I find YouTube's business to be very disingenuous. It is built on the backs of free, stolen content and that's how they got that big," said Reznor in an interview with Billboard. Reznor was not speaking purely as an artist, however. He is also chief creative officer at Apple Music, the streaming service launched by Apple in 2015, which is one of the key rivals to YouTube in the digital music world.

    I find pretending to be on the side of artists against Google when you are drawing a paycheck from one of their biggest competitors to be "very disingenuous".

    Of course I don't find Apple Music to be much of a rival at all to YouTube so this may be much sound and fury signifying nothing. Apple pretending to respect the intellectual property of others is a bit rich.

  5. Re:Free tier by pghmike4 · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Radio is exactly comparable to other free tier (i.e. ad-supported) services. We're talking Pandora, Spotify, and most Internet radio stations, all of which are ad supported and pay royalties. Youtube may have a lot of pirated content (I really don't know how much is being put there by artists, and how much by pirates), but the others pay royalties.

    So, I think Trent is just shilling for his new employer, Apple, which has no free tier for its lame Apple Music service.

  6. "I don't like other content" by backwardsposter · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...said competing content provider.

    In my opinion, Youtube shows that people would create content without all of this artificial scarcity bullshit.

  7. Re:Spilled milk by Shadow99_1 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I think the biggest issue is the expansion of 'IP'. Culture builds on what comes before it, it always has and always will. However in 'modern' times we (or more specifically companies) keep trying to lock culture away behind walls of laws about 'IP'. Culture however will do as culture always does and build on what has come before, laws be damned. I have news for the companies as well: Culture will win in the end.

    Though I personally find Trent's comments funny since Youtube's copyright claim system is so badly abused that certain youtuber's, like Jim Sterling, can get companies to fight over the IP shown in brief snippests (most of which is review or satire and so technically protected) within their videos. Look up Jim's 'Copyright Deadlock' video as an example. Or heck look into E3 videos based on the Twitch streams. ItmeJP commented that his Youtube videos got multiple claims within minutes of being uploaded even though the video stream was provided to commentators for use.

    --
    we are all invisible unless we choose otherwise
  8. Apple's one to talk. by Beardo+the+Bearded · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Apple's entire resurgence is based off MP3 piracy. Before they made their first smartphone, they made billions off their iPod sales, which were 100% filled with pirated MP3s. Nobody was paying 10k to fill an iPod. Nobody.

    Then when they made their first billion, they started a music service and started charging for music and decried piracy, the very thing that made their entire corporate existence possible.

    --

    ---
    ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
  9. Re:Stick to making garbage music by Bing+Tsher+E · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Trent has been purchased by Apple, and they are just realizing value out of owning him.

    Apple has declared war on 'free content on the internet' and are striving to make everything of significance cost money. They can't do this without tearing down every other business model, and as always at Apple (going all the way back to the Apple II clone/compatible makers who they ran out of business, and the multiple 'Windowing System' makers who they ran out of business, handing the platform ownership to deep-pockets Microsoft in the process) lawyers will be wielded against anybody who doesn't do things 'The Apple Way.'

    People act like there isn't a reason some of us fucking hate Apple.