RIAA Paid $16M+ in Legal Fees to Collect $391K

[cookoy]

it's like a traffic cop who is out there to remain crazy drivers like me that i cannot drive like hell and that there are traffic laws to obey. and please don't tell him he's supposed to issue traffic fines to cover his payroll and his bosses' too. Not at my expense!

 

[koss64]

If youre going to make such a massive loss the only logical conlusion is that its being done out of pure spite.

 

[TemjinGold]

[citation][nom]nimbus77[/nom]Its a futile battle that RIAA is waging. People will continue to resist buying music when a CD is 20 dollars with one track on there that is good. Sell the music at a lower cost and people wouldn't be pirating.[/citation]

While this might reduce piracy, I guarantee you this won't end piracy. Even if you sell CDs at 1 cent each, there will still be pirates. They will sell more copies at the lower price but the volume gained may not make up for the margin lost.

 

[gmarsack]

proof the RIAA has to much money to know what do with...

 

[BoJl4apa]

and we say: wtf?!
possibly some sort of laundering via the law firm,
no1's that inefficient.

 

[plznote]

[citation][nom]hiniberus[/nom]Oh so this is why Americans have to pay through their nose with taxes on an everything, the money for the Lawyers has to come from somewhere. At least I'm pretty sure the RIAA/MPAA are financed by the tax-payers[/citation] LOL! You AMerican have to pay nothing Taxes in Canada are way higher

 

[saran008]

[citation][nom]asjflask[/nom]"In the end, it seems the true victor are the lawyers."You think? Hasn't this always been the case? No pun intended.[/citation]
Ya

 

[drakenviator]

My Brother used to work for Blockbuster Video a few years back when they were doing the whole 'no late fees' promotion. Long story short the reason they went with the 'no late fees' is that an internal investigation told them that they were spending over $8 million a year trying to collect on late fees (via their own internal debt collection agency) only to recoup about half of that...

 

[hakesterman]

Yeah, but think about how many people aren't downloading music because they are afraid they'll get sued.

Yeah Right, It probably convinced a few hundred of the 20 million to stop downloading.

 

[ssddx]

This wasn't about money. This is about using scare tactics to get people to rethink what they are doing. Cops do the same thing on highways: they sit there to make you slow down.

I realize this will not stop every person who downloads media illegally, however even if it stops 80% that is still a win for the industry. People complain about the costs not being used to benefit the consumer/industry, however, if the media was not stolen in the first place that just might happen!

Massive downloads with little retail sales will make companies cry pirate and force more restrictions on the consumer without putting anything into their product. Companies will think that their product is desireable but people just want to steal it not buy it. Negligible downloads with little retail sales will make companies rethink their product since it obviously isnt popular.

RIAA: personally i'm not agreeing with the tactics they use and the charges they inflict on the industry, however, without them who would be left to police the industry? If you want them gone then respect the laws.

 

[Netherscourge]

You lose money now to make money in the future.

It's not about collected $391K now - it's about the millions that await them down the road.

 

[arakis]

Think about how much the railroads spent in Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad. Corporations have been dining out on that so-called decision for the past century. The taxes in question amounted to a couple thousand dollars, but the payout of corporations enjoying personhood in the US has been trillions. This is just another example of attempts to enclose the commons, privatize the gains and socailize the losses. An overwhelming number of Supreme Court 14th amendment cases during reconstruction had nothing to do with freed slaves. Instead, corporations pursued this protection with white-hot intensity to benefit their bottom line. Think this is an outdated example? Please see Citizens United v Federal Election Commission.

 

[Guest]

They probably raised more awareness than if they spent $16 million on TV/radio ads telling you that you shouldn't steal their stuff.

 

[nforce4max]

Let me guess they to will get a bailout from the hogs in Washington after the banks have gotten their fill?

 

[gm0n3y]

[citation][nom]Sabiancym[/nom]American Taxes are nothing compared to other first world countries.[/citation]
American government services are nothing compared to other first world countries.

 

[back_by_demand]

[citation][nom]gm0n3y[/nom]American government services are nothing compared to other first world countries.[/citation]
American government services are nothing compared to some third world countries 🙂

 

[blurr91]

[citation][nom]gm0n3y[/nom]American government services are nothing compared to other first world countries.[/citation]

That's right. We have subsidized other first world nations on defense for more than 65 years. No other nation offers that service...for free.

 

[tleavit]

The RIAA may have only have made $400K and spent 17y mil however the companies that back the RIAA probably made 1 billion from scaring people to buy their music from legit sources like Itunes. Therefor this article and its statistics are completely misleading.

 

[chunkymonster]

FAIL! What a bunch of bass-ackwards douche bags!

No wonder the RIAA and MPAA are lobbying for the passage of ACTA.

That $64M would have been better spent by the RIAA adopting and promoting a business model that capitalized on and allowed for legal mp3 downloads.

Fact is pirating is and will continue regardless of how many letters are sent and lawsuits are heard.

 

[back_by_demand]

[citation][nom]blurr91[/nom]That's right. We have subsidized other first world nations on defense for more than 65 years. No other nation offers that service...for OIL[/citation]
Fixed that for ya

 

[back_by_demand]

Encrypted torrents, not using real email address, not putting your real name as the user name - make a few high profile busts of the stupidest people who pirate and all it will do is teach them to be more careful.

 

[Computerrock1]

"This wasn't about money. This is about using scare tactics to get people to rethink what they are doing."

Isn't that the direct definition of terrorist?

 

[eddieroolz]

And after all this they don't have a shred of respectability from the public either.

You'd think they'll learn...but no. RIAA/MPAA guys are just messed in the head.

 

[blurr91]

[citation][nom]back_by_demand[/nom]Fixed that for ya[/citation]

How much oil do we get from Germany, France, Japan, and the UK?

 

[stuoke]

Wow what a joke. When are they ever going to learn this path is not the best one?