For crying out loud, i'm shocked at how cynical my fellow slashdotters are. The arrival of FURTHUR is a MAJOR step in the right direction, both for the music world, and the P2P community.
I've been using Furthur for about 6 weeks now and let me tell you it is *the* killer app for a music lover. I like it even more than the golden age of Napster. Why? BECAUSE THE MUSIC IS WAY BETTER. the bands on Furthur make Quality music, not more of that crappy commodity-pop-flavor-of-the-day.
Could copyrighted material infiltrate the Furthur network? Perhaps. But it would take a lot of effort, and it would have to be masqueraded as a live show by a bootleg-friendly band. As it stands, I have HOURS and HOURS and HOURS of downloaded legal music from Furthur that I haven't even had a chance to listen to yet. I have so many downloaded Phish and Disco Biscuits shows to listen to that I haven't even bothered to search for illegally hidden Metallica album tracks.
Furthur has almost DOUBLED my music collection in the last 6 weeks, legally and free!
More than just a successful example of a P2P system, the Further model should shine as a glaring example of where the MUSIC INDUSTRY IS GOING. The bands on Furthur let their live music be FREE. Bands like Phish, the Disco Biscuits, Sound Tribe Sector 9, and of course the Grateful Dead, these bands embrace the "new economy" of music. In addition, these bands don't usually make a significant portion of their income from CD sales. These artists essentially GIVE AWAY their intellectual property (the music), and use it as an ADVERTISEMENT for their real-world products-- live concerts and merchandise. (which they make a way better percentage off of anyways).
So it's understandable that the record companies are freaking out about file sharing. In this new business model of music, there's not much of a niche left for them!
The record companies need to realize that file-sharing (both legal and illegal) is unstoppable. The PRODUCT for the record companies is no longer the music, but the packaging, the lyrics book, the art, and the service of distribution. They need to re-evaluate their position and figure out what niche they can serve in a world where intellectual property is practically free. That's what they got for shoveling crappy pop music into innocent children's ears!
Furthur is here to stay. (Of course, so is illegal file sharing). But Furthur clearly shows the business model for "new economy" bands. And it's right on the money-- it's obvious to any true music fan, Phish is WAY cooler than Metallica.
D-bad
dylanhassinger@yahoo.com
Slashdot Mirror
For crying out loud, i'm shocked at how cynical my fellow slashdotters are. The arrival of FURTHUR is a MAJOR step in the right direction, both for the music world, and the P2P community. I've been using Furthur for about 6 weeks now and let me tell you it is *the* killer app for a music lover. I like it even more than the golden age of Napster. Why? BECAUSE THE MUSIC IS WAY BETTER. the bands on Furthur make Quality music, not more of that crappy commodity-pop-flavor-of-the-day. Could copyrighted material infiltrate the Furthur network? Perhaps. But it would take a lot of effort, and it would have to be masqueraded as a live show by a bootleg-friendly band. As it stands, I have HOURS and HOURS and HOURS of downloaded legal music from Furthur that I haven't even had a chance to listen to yet. I have so many downloaded Phish and Disco Biscuits shows to listen to that I haven't even bothered to search for illegally hidden Metallica album tracks. Furthur has almost DOUBLED my music collection in the last 6 weeks, legally and free! More than just a successful example of a P2P system, the Further model should shine as a glaring example of where the MUSIC INDUSTRY IS GOING. The bands on Furthur let their live music be FREE. Bands like Phish, the Disco Biscuits, Sound Tribe Sector 9, and of course the Grateful Dead, these bands embrace the "new economy" of music. In addition, these bands don't usually make a significant portion of their income from CD sales. These artists essentially GIVE AWAY their intellectual property (the music), and use it as an ADVERTISEMENT for their real-world products-- live concerts and merchandise. (which they make a way better percentage off of anyways). So it's understandable that the record companies are freaking out about file sharing. In this new business model of music, there's not much of a niche left for them! The record companies need to realize that file-sharing (both legal and illegal) is unstoppable. The PRODUCT for the record companies is no longer the music, but the packaging, the lyrics book, the art, and the service of distribution. They need to re-evaluate their position and figure out what niche they can serve in a world where intellectual property is practically free. That's what they got for shoveling crappy pop music into innocent children's ears! Furthur is here to stay. (Of course, so is illegal file sharing). But Furthur clearly shows the business model for "new economy" bands. And it's right on the money-- it's obvious to any true music fan, Phish is WAY cooler than Metallica. D-bad dylanhassinger@yahoo.com