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Hello all,
I was reading the news and saw that Limewire was shut down by RIAA. According to the report, it cost RIAA $64 million to fight "illegal dowloaders" and has only recovered a little over $1 million. Anybody see the waste here other than me? I always thought that things like Limewire actually helped groups because it got your music to a subset of customers that you never had...people who can not afford to or do not want to take a chance on an unknown artist of CD. I have bought alot more CDs because of things like Limewire, because I got to have a few songs off the CD and then decided to buy it because I liked the band or group in question.

So what are everyone else's thoughts. Also, where will everyone else get their music downloads? :-)

I use youtube.

Never used limewire and never been interested in using it.

Limewire was a haven for viruses and malware. Im honestly glad that crap hole website went under.

I used to use limewire, and for some things, I still do. When it wants to work, it's good.

I've since found much better ways to do the same thing

What people like the 'RIAA' fail to understand is that people have been doing this before the internet even existed, and it isn't going to stop by taking down a couple big names. TPB would be a devastating loss to the community, but eventually people would get over it. Limewire's ben around since like 2003. People barely even use it anymore. What was their purpose in taking it down?

Samus_aran115 wrote:I used to use limewire, and for some things, I still do. When it wants to work, it's good.

I've since found much better ways to do the same thing

What people like the 'RIAA' fail to understand is that people have been doing this before the internet even existed, and it isn't going to stop by taking down a couple big names. TPB would be a devastating loss to the community, but eventually people would get over it. Limewire's ben around since like 2003. People barely even use it anymore. What was their purpose in taking it down?

To make a statement is my best guess. The RIAA wants to say "Look what we did! VICTORY!", when in all actuality, there are so many other sites that people frequent. I think the RIAA needs to really ask itself "Is this truely worth it?". I mean, they panicked when CD Burners came out and said it was the end of the music industry. Years later, I still see the music industry and CDs around.

Yea no joke. 64 million spent to gain 1 million back? Really? Who ever runs that company, needs to be fired and forced to commit suicide. Hell maybe he was a former big bank executive

Limewire isn't shutting down, it's just their file sharing service.

Apparently the folks over at the big office or whatever they use as an HQ still plan to continue running Limewire as an online store, though how they intend to compete with other well established distributors when the only thing they got traffic for were illegal downloading/malware distribution is beyond me.

LordofHats wrote:Limewire isn't shutting down, it's just their file sharing service.

Apparently the folks over at the big office or whatever they use as an HQ still plan to continue running Limewire as an online store, though how they intend to compete with other well established distributors when the only thing they got traffic for were illegal downloading/malware distribution is beyond me.

I noticed that the last time I used it. Really crappy music on there. Like, music that you wouldn't even piss on if it was on fire.

That's beyond me. iTunes clearly has ALL of the business in digital music. To even attempt to compete against them is funny

I've noticed Amazon has some sort of digital music store too...Sounds like a load of crap. I see no reason to use it except to buy beatles and ac/dc songs (which itunes doesn't sell)

I thank the RIAA for killing a lame dog. Now, how will they take down YouTube??

chowderhead13 wrote:I thank the RIAA for killing a lame dog. Now, how will they take down YouTube??

They're too late. Google already took down youtube

LordofHats wrote:

chowderhead13 wrote:I thank the RIAA for killing a lame dog. Now, how will they take down YouTube??

They're too late. Google already took down youtube

Yeah, I know. It's scary....

Google has their own video service, and I must say...It's rather good. REALLY fast. There's barely any waiting time at all for those videos.

I see the title for this thread and think Motley Crue's Livewire. You will all pay for that.

Frazzled wrote:I see the title for this thread and think Motley Crue's Livewire. You will all pay for that.

As did I. Good thing I have an opinion of both

Gnutella (the network that Limewire operates on) is too decentralized to "shut down" by anyone. I'm not exactly up to speed on their protocol specifications, but as I understand, you can build a repository of peers off of any other peer that already has such a thing. They just forced them to remove the download. I'm sure Frostwire and other alternatives still exist. Leave it to the RIAA to combat the thing that was hip 10 years ago.

daedalus wrote:Gnutella (the network that Limewire operates on) is too decentralized to "shut down" by anyone. I'm not exactly up to speed on their protocol specifications, but as I understand, you can build a repository of peers off of any other peer that already has such a thing. They just forced them to remove the download. I'm sure Frostwire and other alternatives still exist. Leave it to the RIAA to combat the thing that was hip 10 years ago.

That's usually how the law works. 10 years isn't that long to take down a huge business. But if it involves the internet, you can guarantee you'll be late to the party Just look at napster. They took it down way too late. And that was much more severe than what limewire did. Napster was making a profit.

Meh, good riddance. How else are Musicians going to afford more Diamond studded swimming pools and Solid Gold humvees if people don't buy their stoofs.

Slarg232 wrote:Meh, good riddance. How else are Musicians going to afford more Diamond studded swimming pools and Solid Gold humvees

These things don't grow on trees.

Monster Rain wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:Meh, good riddance. How else are Musicians going to afford more Diamond studded swimming pools and Solid Gold humvees

These things don't grow on trees.

Neither do people that want to pay for actual music

Samus_aran115 wrote:

Monster Rain wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:Meh, good riddance. How else are Musicians going to afford more Diamond studded swimming pools and Solid Gold humvees

These things don't grow on trees.

Neither do people that want to pay for actual music

Did you hear the joke as it whizzed over your head?

Also, I'll never understand people so proud of their thievery. I guess integrity is rarer than I thought.

It's strange....I don't believe I know I single person in my age group that pays for actual music....Except me, actually. I've bought like 5 david bowie CD's in the last couple months....But the rest of my Itunes is stolen

Monster Rain wrote:

Samus_aran115 wrote:

Monster Rain wrote:

Slarg232 wrote:Meh, good riddance. How else are Musicians going to afford more Diamond studded swimming pools and Solid Gold humvees

These things don't grow on trees.

Neither do people that want to pay for actual music

Did you hear the joke as it whizzed over your head?

Also, I'll never understand people so proud of their thievery. I guess integrity is rarer than I thought.

I don't think she did!

So all I ask of everybody: PLEEEEEEEEE- HEEEEEEEESE

Interesting, apparently Limewire DOES have to connect up to some server in order to establish connection. That's both interesting and horrifying at the same time. Frostwire runs like a champ though.

KingCracker wrote: Yea no joke. 64 million spent to gain 1 million back? Really? Who ever runs that company, needs to be fired and forced to commit suicide. Hell maybe he was a former big bank executive

The troubling thing is that they're not worried about money. They make money hand-over-fist from bands, in amounts too grotesque for people like you or I to even begin to comphrend. There is actually really well thought out commentary from Courtney Love (of all the people) and the previous manager of Pink Floyd floating around on the intertubes talking about how getting involved with the labels is a losing game that sucks all the money possible out of the artists. Frankly, I was astounded to hear Courtney Love was even aware of the existence of Math, let alone practical application. But this fight isn't about money. They have enough going on that is about the money that this doesn't matter.

Their problem is the Internet. The Internet allows for me to be talking to you right now, whether you're in the apartments across the parking lot, or in Japan. They're no longer the gatekeepers to culture, and that is breaking their business model; their bread and butter. Combine that with the fact that I can get a computer capable of mixing music on as well as some noise canceling foam for about the price of a moderate quality instrument, and suddenly those expensive studios are redundant and, well, expensive.

So now artists release some music for free on these scary "socialist" Internets (see NIN and Radiohead, for examples of bands that have "made it", even more who are much smaller time who aren't there yet), which are going to be the undoing of our good old fashioned capitalism as we know it, and then the Culture Cartel has to do their civic duty to step in and try to put the fear of God into you by making there be a bunch of __REALLY_FREAKING_NOTICEABLE_LAWSUITS!!1!one__ you can't help but notice. These tell you that sharing music is bad(c) and that you shouldn't do it because it's wrong. The difference between free music and "free" music is surprising little when you're not paying close attention. If you think "free" is free, and then you hear "free" is going to get you sued for eleventy billion dollars, you'll not download ANY music at all, for fear of having your life completely destroyed.

Now, I'm not one to deprive bands of money. I understand what a losing game producing any sort of Imaginary Property is in this day and age, be it music, books, source code, limericks, whatever. I'm friends with two published authors, and I myself own and play a trumpet, though I won't pretend to claim any money from it's use. However, speaking from personal experience, if I hear a band and I like them enough to see them prosper to make more music, I'm going to try to finance them as well as I can. Most artists (according to the earlier mentioned discussion on how the labels work) make about nothing from an album sale, however, they do tend to make more money from merchandising/concerts. Even less still from albums if it's an RIAA label. As a result, I tend to not pay for music that is RIAA owned. I AM NOT CONDONING STEALING/PIRATING MUSIC. I just do not pay for their music. Interpret that how you will. The band that are RIAA owned should not be hated though; they made a bad decision and usually are on the hook for many years as to not be able to escape. Sometimes their contracts require as many as seven (7) albums before they can get out of their grasp. These people a lot of times are working at Denny's, Jack in the Box, whereever. They're desperate and usually are told they don't need a lawyer, because "this is just an informal promise, but you need to sign it".

When I hear a band that I enjoy, typically from friends or Pandora, I look them up on riaaradar.com. That tells me if they're part of the cartel or not. If not, I buy away. If so, I shake my head sadly, and get on with my life. There is enough evil in this world I inevitably contribute to; I don't need more on my conscience.

By the way, bands I listen to that are self published:

PLEASE the band (ska)
Upstanding Youth (ska)
Nine Inch Nails
NOFX (punk)

Sorry to preach, but support the bands, not the labels. Things are only going to get worse the more time goes on. If you don't believe that, check out ACTA and then try to figure out why you've not heard anything about it before now.

I tend to buy music directly from the bands, whenever possible.

NO! Now where will I get all my viruses and child porn from?

I didn't realise limewire was still used, reminds me, anyone know if anything is happening with isohunt.com? heard they were getting shut down.

They got into some sort of legal snafu earlier in the year. The switched over to being a torrent search engine for legal reasons.