Music Piracy

The term music piracy is most often used to describe the peer-to-peer sharing of copyrighted music files. Even if the music file is only for personal use, it is still considered copyright infringement.

The two opposing sides in the controversy over whether music piracy is a crime are the "pirates" themselves, and a large chunk of the music industry. (Some musicians support piracy and offer free downloads of their music themselves).
One of the most prominent and critisized bands to be against music piracy is Metallica. When they discovered that an unreleased song of theirs was available on Napster the band and those assosiated with them threw a fit and took legal action which eventually led to Napster being shut down.
Backlash against Metallica was huge and they are still hated by some for what happened 12 years later. File-sharers were angry that Metallica had a ton of money and fame and wanted more at the expense of their fans. This is one of the most commin arguments used by file-sharing supporters. The bands and record companies get rich enough off of concerts, merch, and selling the rights to their music to movies and TV, therefore, the fans should not have to pay 20 dollars for a CD. In 21st century fashion, the rage spread all over the internet resulting in a serious dip in popularity for Metallica.

Video contains strong language


Not all bands oppose piracy. Bands like NOFX called the music industry parasitic and said musicians don't get all that much money from record sales anyway. Most of it goes to executives who had no hand in the creative process. Many punk and metal bands, save for Metallica if they can even still be called metal, support piracy as a form of robbing the rich for the benefit of the poor. The music industry was seen as outdated in the late 20th century and early 21st century and pirates and bands alike were calling for an overhaul with their anti-industry actions.


Change came with iTunes and other sites that allowed individual songs to be purchased. Prices became lower and fans could pick and choose what to pay for. Music Piracy, however, still happens and bands still do not typically get a large amount from record sales. There will probably always be pirates but there will be less and less of them if the music industry continues to evolve to accomidate new technology and ideas for distribution.