14 DAY TRIAL // Crazy as it may sound, apparently file sharing only leads to increased music sales according to some studies being quoted on the Open Rights Group discussion list earlier this month. Don't be raising an eyebrow, there's some more explaining involved before the idea starts taking realistic weight. There's a discovery element involved with file sharing and downloading. Say you wanted a specific track, but only full albums are available, so the only thing to do is download it whole.
The songs available this way might incite the downloader to buy the original package, should he want to show his appreciation for the singer or band's work. "The music industry should be thinking about business models in which it pays commission to filesharers," Edward Barlow wrote on ORG's topic. This, however, is not the official ORG's policy, as Becky Hodge told The Register about her company.
There's something to think about. Should the music industry magnates consider paying the people who it has fought so hard and for so long exactly for promoting their offerings?
Andrew Orlowski of the cited source ran the idea by Feargal Sharkey, former Undertones lead singer, now chairman of British Music Rights. "The obvious thing is who's going to provide this compensation? Shall I assume it's the original songwriters and composers who don't make much money as it is? That's one of the most fanciful and non-practical ideas I've heard for quite some time. But God bless them for making me laugh and cheering me up today!"
Judging by his reaction, it's not likely to happen anytime soon, but, as the online communities are now focusing on the future of DRM, it is a possibility not really that out there. Of course the compensation is a dream that will probably never come true, but being able to share without fear of consequences and even be encouraged to do it is worth following.