downloading

[clairabelle1705]

I don't know if this is really the place for this thread, or if there has been a thread like this before, but I was just wondering...What are the laws on downloading music? Are there any free music downloading services online that are legal? Or do you have to pay for all downloads now? Just curious...Thanks!

 

[twosteppin]

Hey clairabelle

I do not believe that free music downloading services that are legal exist. I do know you can buy music from Itunes, I think is like a dollar a song. seems like a lot. but when you only like one song from a group, its better than buying the whole cd, you know?
I think the laws on downloading music is simple, its illegal. Unless it is a service where you pay.

 

[stonetoflesh]

Music copyright law is so nebulous, it's difficult to pin down what the exact laws on downloading are-- where does fair use end and infringement begin? Here's a start:
http://law.freeadvice.com/intellectual_property/music_law/
http://www.wiredsafety.org/law/copyrights/index.html

If you're into jambands and the like, you have no worries; Archive.org is home to free downloadable recordings of 17,000+ shows by 726 artists:
http://www.archive.org/audio/

 

[DJ B.K.]

There are free limited music download services like www.purevolume.com and www.soundclick.com where artists choose to put their songs on a site to be downloaded.

 

[nadroj1985]

Good sources of free and legal indie music downloads:

Epitonic
Insound

 

[wgjones3]

From what I understand, if the artist didn't offer the song for download or explicitly agree to allow its download, it's not legal to download it. It stinks that more artists don't allow downloads, because I found a lot of great music of P2P downloading and ended up growing my CD collection (legally) quite a bit because of it.

BTW--Amazon.com has a lot of good free downloads.

 

[Western Deity]

Isn't $1/track a better deal than buying the actual album for a lot of albums these days?

 

[wgjones3]

I've bought a couple of songs off Wal Mart's music download service, but if there's 2 or 3 good songs on the CD and it's not a really high-demand CD, you can usually get a copy for $3 or $4 off half.com or used off Amazon. Pawn shops and used CD stores are also good places to grow a collection. I hardly ever buy a new CD anymore.

 

[absolutely_lost_86]

there are many programs tht make u pay 2 download music now.

 

[dustt10]

It's a little bit of a longshot in finding the music you are looking for, but, Amazon.com has some good free downloads. I don't believe they offer a list of all the free songs available, but they show you some. I just happened upon the Jimmy Eat World and Local H downloads which were pretty good.

 

[dustt10]

Hey, one of those ad links here on CF says "Free Music Downloads". Maybe you should click it.

 

[wgjones3]

Programs like Kaaza that you pay a monthly fee for and have unlimited downloads are still a no-no according to the RIAA. A lot of the people they've been suing have subscribed to Kaaza plus.