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Napster and the "The more things change" rule

Drew Wilson at Zero Paid points out that Napster celebrates its 10th birthday this month. The Globe and Mail takes a deeper look in its Download Decade series.
Written by Denise Howell, Inactive

Drew Wilson at Zero Paid points out that Napster celebrates its 10th birthday this month. The Globe and Mail takes a deeper look in its Download Decade series. In the last decade, iTunes, Amazon, and various subscription music services have demonstrated there's a vast audience more than willing to pay for entertainment downloads given the right mix of value and convenience, though pricing and freedom from DRM remain sticking points. At the same time, lawsuits against individual alleged file sharers march forward, and the entertainment industry has not relented in its pursuit of what it perceives as Napster's successors (e.g., Pirate Bay, Real DVD). Which prompts me to wonder: in the ten years since Napster sent the entertainment industry its wake-up call, has anything fundamentally changed? [Update:] Or as Bob Lefsetz puts it: "So I just don’t understand this ten year period. What did the rights holders prove?" [poll id="8"]

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