Re: Napster destroys Western Civilization

On 05/10/2000, Collin Goff <colgoff[_at_]worldnet.att.net> wrote:
>
> Excuse me, but I don't think that you have the faintest idea how the
> the music business works. Songwriters are almost NEVER paid any
> "initial compensation;" they derive their income ONLY on royalties.

Yes and no. There often is an initial payment, but it's an advance against royalties to be earned in the future. If one is not familiar with how the business works, this distinction might be lost.

It's rare these days when there is a commissioned work, and there are some instances in which there's an initial buyout, but even in such work for hire situations the performing rights societies pay the "writer's share" to the flesh-and-blood songwriter rather than the corporate "author" under the Copyright Act.

There's still room for debate on whether just because things are one way they ought to be that way, but I tend to believe that in this instance, the system isn't perfect, but its advantages presently outweigh the disadvantages.

S. Martin Keleti
<keleti[_at_]manifesto.com> Received on Thu May 11 2000 - 16:18:08 GMT