Let me be the first here to say, WHAT THE F*CK!
I don't listen to music and I am sure I am not the only one.
Even when I do, I don't listen to Western/English music.
And I am supposed to shell out $5 monthly?
They already have tax on blank disc and now this?
Songwriters to propose $5 download fee
Charge would offset illegal downloads, says group
The Songwriters Association of Canada will reveal a proposal Thursday that would see every Canadian's monthly Internet bill increase by $5 in exchange for the ability to download as many "illegal" music files as they choose.
The SAC says its proposal, which would require federal approval, would wipe out the need for music-selling Web sites such as iTunes.ca and PureTracks.ca, making it legal for one person to share a music CD with as many people as he or she might wish.
"That's a very reasonable amount of money to legally, without fear of any legal repercussions, to be able to download that and share it with [whomever] you want to and as many times as you want," said Eddie Schwartz, president of the songwriters' group. "On iTunes to download one album, it's $10. This is half of that and this is pretty reasonable to have access to the entire repertoire of Western music."
The organization will gather at Toronto's Ryerson University to launch the initiative and demand an immediate amendment to the Canadian Copyright Act that would establish a new right, called the Right to Equitable Reenumeration for Music File Sharing. The amendment would allow the songwriters to begin collecting fees from Canadian Internet subscribers.
Mr. Schwartz said the proposal was created at the request of federal politicians who are reviewing Canada's Copyright Act. The proposed fees could see the songwriters' association, a lobby group that represents Canada's music composers and lyricists, collect between $500-million and $900-million annually.
Sales of music in Canada was valued at $704-million in 2006, the most recent year that data has been made available, a far cry from the $1.3-billion reported during the industry's peak sales year in 1999.
Still, the amount the songwriters are demanding seems far higher than the actual damages that piracy causes the music industry. A Canwest News Service study, using the music industry's own figures, suggests that Canadian artists may only be losing as much as $118.8-million a year as the result of illegal downloading.
Statistics verifying the economic impact of music piracy to the recording industry are hard to come by. Organizations such as the Recording Industry Association of America have released studies claiming that file-sharing has led to devastating losses.
Other organizations, including Statistics Canada, have reported that file-sharing leads to an increase in song sales.
Mr. Schwartz did not dispute the estimate, but said he has received figures suggesting there could be more than 40 billion songs shared illegally in North America annually. Still, he believes it's not about the losses the industry has suffered - it's about helping to support the artists and creators of music for songs that are being shared online and not being paid for.
"We have a totally different take on this. Losses are irrelevant. I am an artist and this is a massive new use of my work, for which I am getting paid zero," Mr. Schwartz said.
He lamented the current situation of illegal file swapping online.
Canwest News Service
