"Keith G" wrote in message
. ..

"Iain M Churches" wrote in message
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"Keith G" wrote in message
. ..

"Iain M Churches" wrote in message
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"Keith G" wrote


The MI works to the following set of rules:

Rule 1 - We will shaft you (CD prices in the UK etc.)

Have you considered that in some areas of the world (the former
Eastern bloc, and the FarEast) that pirate/counterfeit recordings
account for 95% of sales?


Only two things make 'counterfeiting' viable in my book - overpricing
and/or rareity...

But even these circumstances do not make it permissible.


Not the point. Overpricing and rareity *cause* the counterfeiting be it
music, watches, clothing or Vermeers...

In addition, one can easily tell a cheap counterfeit watch, or item of
clothing. Counterfeit CD's are clones of the original produced at next to
no cost.


People do this to fool the public, and make money with little or
no investment.


Yes, I'm sure some do - to flog at car boots and round the pubs....

It's much much bigger than that.

Very few people can differentiate between a
genuine and counterfeit CD.

I disagree but irrelevant anyway...

It's relevant because if they knew they were paying money for
a couunterfeit product they might not buy it. Very few people
can differentiate between a pirate CD and the genuine article.

A common phenomena now is that one child in a school class buys
a CD, and makes 40 copies for his/her classmates!! You don't have
to have a degree in applied maths to see there is something wrong
the-)


Iain, these unsubstantiated statements mean nothing to me. Express them as
opinion or belief by all means, but don't push them to me as 'factual'....

Nothing unsubstantiated here. Read the BPI annual report.


What, if piracy ended tomorrow you think the price of CDs would come down?

Hopefully, who knows.

Ironic that some of the means to copy this stuff is manufactured/marketed
by firms with a vested interest in producing the 'software'!! (Sony)

True.


In the case of CD's there are cheap and expensive labels.
The revenue of some companies in some areas would increase
20 fold if piracy were to be brought under control.


Never said it wasn't. But, in my book, so is overpricing (ie 16 quid for a
CD in the UK, 11 on the continent and 7 in the States for the same item) -
although more commonly called a 'rip-off'.

No-one is forced to buy a product


Iain