The RIAA is now mounting a massive media campaign to point out the evil ways of people who download music.
Some of the activity is clearly theft, but much of it is discovery and auditioning the product before purchase. Consumers are often make purchases based on features like cover art or reviews from obscure publications. The music industry is focused on promoting to a mass market and forgetting that people might have broader tastes.
Some anthropological studies of online music consumption suggest that most files are played less than once. This, coupled with the fact that radio has become homogenized and consolidated, should be sending a signal to people who are charged with crafting strategies for strengthening the music market.
Copyright law has been patched in a haphazard fashion over the years and seems poorly suited for the digital world. The major content producers want to blame all of their woes on music downloading (and video file downloading for the movie industry) and seem intent on purchasing members of Congress to enact harsh laws that have some rather chilling consequences.
The music industry needs a crash program to examine how to compete in the current age. Investors should worry about companies with a failed business model and stonewalling executives - perhaps the value of the music industry stock portfolio is too high considering they lack a coherent strategy that squares with human behavior.
Some people have managed to create interesting business models that compete with "free" - Microsoft thrives, the bottled water industry continues to grow and libraries never wiped out the booksellers.
I feel there are major openings for small labels and individual artists who lack shelf space and promotion in the conventional media to connect with and expand their audiences. Some are doing this now, but the time is right for clever people to recognize that the music industry might have a dinosaur and small mammal components .
Large companies with failed business models are not guaranteed success based on their size and connection with lawmakers.
So here are some suggestions:
Write to your Senator and Congressperson. Our Congressman's office said they had only received a handful of mail on the subject and the issue wasn't on the radar of their boss.
Check your stock portfolio - companies with stale business models generally see decreasing profits followed by losses.
Expand your horizons by attending live concerts. Strangely enough many small name musicians have much more in the way of talent than what the majors want you to buy.
Expand your horizons by frequenting used record and CD stores - you can dramaticaly lower the cost of new music discovery by getting rid of old vinyl and plastic that you no longer use. Many of these places are run by enthusiasts who will help you find interesting music.
Find interesting radio stations and take notes on pieces that appeal to you. Clear Channel Radio (and others like it) have eliminated interesting stations in many markets, but National Public Radio has several shows devoted to interesting music. There are also a few great Internet radio stations (some are associated with NPR like WUNC, WNYC and KUER, others are amazingly independent like WFMU), although they are under fire from the industry.
Support independent artists who appeal to your tastes by purchasing directly from them. In many cases you will find they have a great interest in their audience and fans (we've had phone calls from some that we support) and you might find this deeper connection rewarding.
7:34:41 AM 
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