Net Savoir

Copyright material is, on the whole, controlled by companies who are still stuck in the dark ages. They want to maintain the rights and ownership forever – even when you purchase a physical CD!

These companies are clearly not listening to what the customers and the artists want. Which is a great shame for them, as there is a potential for big money for them if they take notice.

What customers want:

• Cheap products
• Near-instant availability
• Quality products
• Ample choice
• Permanent ownership rights

That’s pretty much it. I’m sitting around late on a Monday night and I remember that track I heard on the radio this morning. I search for the snippet of lyrics I can recall, work out what song it is and who it’s by. I then want to own it. I’m quite happy to pay $1 for it. But I want it NOW. I want it on my iPod and I want to listen to it tomorrow when I go out. I also don’t want to get screwed over when I reinstall Windows or upgrade iTunes. I want to own the track and for that to be it.

The same goes for movies and TV. I don’t want to wait until show x is on TV. I’m not rearranging my social schedule to watch TV. No-one owns VCRs anymore and I’m not rich enough for a set-top box that can record. Hell – I’m a student. What I want is to be able to download the movie or next season of the show that I’m in the mood for that night. I’m willing to pay a bit. Maybe $5 to hire or $10 to own. But I want it NOW, in good quality and for it to be mine forever (except if I was hiring). No games – that just won’t hold with me.

So, okay. Let’s see what the artists want:

• Exposure (especially to the right audience)
• Some income (sometimes more)
• Fans who will come to their gigs

Seems to me that making it easy for fans to get hold of their stuff would benefit them a great deal. Just think of all those late night $10 impulse-buy spends by teens who are desperate to be up with the next big thing.

Right. That’s settled. So, what about the labels and studios. What do they want?

• Lots and lots of money
• To have control over everything forever and ever
• To get paid every time someone hums a tune

Well, something’s got to give. Face it. They don’t really have control at the moment, which is why they’re in uproar about filesharing. It’s time to try something new.

For starters, they need to get music, TV and movies online ready to be purchased before they start hyping them. This also means you need to have TV ready to download at the same time as it’s aired on TV. Any later than that and half of your potential paying customers just downloaded it for free from someone that taped it digitally and stuck the torrent up as soon as the show finished. You annoyed your fans by not having something they could buy, so they got what they wanted for free. These people might go and buy the box set down the track, but they’re not going to go back and buy a (possibly DRM controlled) digital copy a week later when you finally get it online.

This timeline goes for the whole world, too. Australians want to see the next episode of “Lost” just as much as the Americans. If they can’t buy it before that first torrent goes up then you’ve lost them. Here’s a thought: Let people buy the digital version BEFORE you play it on TV. Let TV be the second-best option for people who can’t be bothered forking out the cash. I am absolutely certain you will make more money this way.

I get the feeling that labels and studios could make many millions by offering the sorts of payment options tried and tested in other industries over the years:

• Pay-per-view
• Periodic rental (one day or one week)
• Subscription with caps (either by size or by dollar value of the media)
• Unlimited subscriptions
• Subscription to a radio or video stream (sort of like TV)

There are many ways to stop people sharing the files once they’ve got them:

• Digital signature (If I know my name and email address are encrypted in that file I won’t be giving it to anyone)
• Time or usage-locks (such as the ones used by trial software – offer rentals in a special format that will only work with a specific player)
• Prosecute the people who are sharing the material (rather than targeting the ones that download it).

The labels could be making a fortune by doing things right. Most pirating only occurs because people can’t buy what they want when they want it. They have products that the people want – let them have it!