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A Word from our Sponsors... Urgent message for YouTube usersby Mike (Shmoo) Steely -- Oct. 11, 2006 Folks, many of you are probably aware that Internet power-house Google has recently purchased YouTube. I can certainly think of worse entities who might have ended up holding the reins of the popular video sharing website, but there are still a number of concerns that I think need to be addressed. In preparation for the sale to Google, YouTube has been striking deals with major RIAA record labels to license their music for authorized use. At first glance, you might think this is a "good thing" because YouTube users would then be free of liability for copyright infringement when they post music videos or utilize RIAA music as a bed for their own originally created content and etc. However, many of us who have been stuggling against the recording industry for years can plainly see that such licensing arrangements by YouTube actually only benefit the RIAA labels whom agree to these advertising supported deals which substantially reward the labels with the vast bulk of the ad-revenue. In fact, YouTube's own cut when RIAA content is used appears to be only break-even (if even that.) Furthermore, sadly, and by comparison, the regular folk who upload their own original vids to YouTube don't see a dime. They don't have an option to earn from their own work. (Let's hope Google/YouTube will change that policy soon.) When you do the RIAA labels' job for them by uploading their music videos, or by using their music in your own videos, you are directly supporting the beast by giving them access to a revenue stream that has the potential to SAVE the recording industry from the decline we have happily watched them suffer these past few years. This is intolerable, and we MUST NOT LET IT OCCUR! I am not suggesting a boycott of YouTube itself, but I do strongly urge folks NOT to upload any RIAA music videos. I implore that you refrain from using RIAA songs as a music bed for your own created vids, and I BEG you not to even WATCH anything owned by the RIAA labels. Why would anyone want to reward the RIAA for such horrible behavior that they have engaged in since forever? Don't give the enemy a life-line to survive. Hell, we had them on the ropes. In short, please continue your boycott against the RIAA and only support independent music at YouTube (or elsewhere on the web for that matter.) |