can we settle this now, the so called 'buzz' on sites like you tube is far more relevant to new acts and is a highly necessary tool to get their careers going. Prince has shown so much savvy since Feb 2004 in getting the world talking that he doesn't need the net as much + Having some crappy , shaky video footage from the o2 really does him no favours.
Prince's success comes from his live Rep now and not on albums. When he announces his next US tour it will sell out because of it's huge success in 04, likewise when he comes back here in a few years the same will happen.
For the record what's all the fuss about P wanting to stop illegal trading of HIS art!, Many other artists will follow him of that we can be sure.

Thankyou, good night!.

Co-Sign but, can't tell anyone on this board anything. P has nothing to gain and everything to lose with bootlegging in general and since most orgers know how to get a hold of the material on YOUTUBE I don't understand the bitching.

-----

funkyhead said:

the kids are the only thing keeping the industry alive
and now you're gonna cut them outta the picture too? please!

© Prince (just in case)

I think for the majority of the fans that it's not about publicity. It's about Prince's LONGSTANDING battle against his fan base. I'm not talking about the boots, I am talking about his need to control every nuance/thing said about him. For someone who pretty much is an enigma yet chooses NOT to discuss anything regarding his music or anything he does, he should expect that there are people who WILL discuss him and want to share their experiences with others about him. This is coupled by the fact that not only does he discourage this, but offers NOTHING in it's place.

No Other artist does this. No other artist treats their fan base the way he does. He sure does love our money and the fact that many will go to every single concert he has. When things are in his favor he could care less about us, but when the chips were down he relied on his core to get him through the rough patches.

No he doesn't need youtube! He has however, NEEDED his core fan base! That's 100% fact!! Had it not been for our continued support though the years, he'd have been a has been when he was running around with "Slave" wrote on his face!

We've been nothing to Prince but money giving enablers! This isn't the first time he's thumbed his nose at his fan base and yes, this is about his fan base because no one else gives a crap enough about him to post his videos on youtube in the first place!!

no offense to the kids but most of princes fan base was built before the advent of the internet. like many legends young fans are gravy, most of them developed by parents. now as an old head i loved youtube to find rare stuff that i didnt collect and to show my daughter just how badass he was back in the day, sort of an educational tool. but the raw truth is the generation built on piracy can call him names all they like because he isnt dependent on them anyways.

SexyBeautifulOne said:

I totally agree with you.

No one is making nor losing money by the Youtube Posts. Madonna had a legitamate claim to take down the Confessions Live material because she was planning Her TV special and DVD release. And I gotta say some of those videos were better than what she got recorded.

I'm telling you, Prince does not care that these kids are angry with him or anyone else, he's gonna do what he wants to do regardless and he knows he will always have fans that will be there for him. I think he's going a little overboard on this myself but it is his right.

superspaceboy said:

There's a legitimate basis to Prince's claim for infringement of copyright (whether we like it or not) where people post videos which incorporate Prince's music and the videos (no matter how rubbish the recording is) are broadcast without payment for public performance of the song.

.

Get real!
If Prince refused to let some obsessive fan into his house in the nineties (the one who came and camped out at his house), he was not thumbing his nose at his fan-base.

This ongoing, old, old, hater vibe based on ancient history is duller than dishwater no matter how much you try to cross-collateralise it with whatever freeloader philosophy you have kicking around.

The 'free' user-content sites are a temporary phenomenon.
The proof of that is emergent.
Prince isn't leading this reclamation of rights, although he's certainly opportunistic about it's potential to keep his profile high in the news and business media

Prince is going to do a David Bowie in the (fairly) near future.
I mean offering stock in himself.
He's mentioned David Bowie often enough to reveal that Bowie's 'I owned myself even in the sixties' situation is one he digs.

Watch and learn

SexyBeautifulOne said:

excessex said:

You really need to stop replying to me!

I have no idea of what you're rambling about with his house and somebody camping in front of it, nor do I care.

If my philosophy is freeloader-ish then yours is delusional.

The short and sweet of it is...Prince is joining a fight that's got it roots deeply embedded with the very people he fought against and we supported his fight against. Greedy ass corporations that want control over what we see and hear on the internet, just like they have over EVERYTHING on tv, radio and in the movies!

Too bad you're too blinded by your Prince fandemonium to see that!

When they loose and thank heavens they will because this issue involves more than just the United States, unlike tv, radio and the movies, I'll be happy to tell you what I watched and learned!

superspaceboy said:

i remember one time after a soundcheck he was asking us not to talk about it and telling others not to believe what we said happened there... why can't we talk about our experiences?? shothelove 4 GOoDness sakes

oops, i forgot... © Prince
[Edited 9/18/07 0:06am]

don't know if the point has been brought up or not... but maybe prince doesn't MIND cutting down his fan base... that is to say, maybe he's trying to separate the wheat from the chaff in some form...

SexyBeautifulOne said:

HERE, HERE! Nicely said.

Whatever happened to 'Free the music'? I have a sad feeling he'll be leader of the house band, playing for the new world order in the very near future.

Seriously, what's his problem? Nobody is profiting in any way by uploading his little-seen music videos to youtube (they're .flv's for christ sake, not dvd quality!). He should be happy that they're out there and available to be seen and discovered (let's face it, he's bloody useless himself in this respect - he could've released dozens of music video dvds and concert dvds like other name acts/artists do, but no, too precious). In fact, these (non-profit making) uploads generate an interest in him and his music.

It wouldn't bother me if he was stopping it because he was about to release some dvd compilations of music videos from the 90's and it was somehow going to effect his profit margin - that i could understand - i'm sure we would all buy dvd quality versions. But history shows us that he has absolutely no intention of releasing them for purchase, so there is no reason why other shouldn't make them available to be seen (again, at absolutely no profit). These video weren't stolen from his Vault, ala, the Pam and Tommy (Maytes ex ) video. He'd already chosen to make them available in the passed (I mean seriously, think back to the 80's and 90's, who DIDN'T video tape there favorite music videos from tv to watch? - same thing, different decade - he had no problem releasing these very same videos for television to play to the public - who in turn videoed them - now Mr Net-Savvy, Leader-In-The-Field, 'Free-the-Music' spits the dummy for music that he's already released being made available to be seen on the net - Pretentious Hypocrite, no?)

Is this not a 180 degree reverse of the same, very reason for the bitchy little feud with Warners - wanting the music to be made available to the public? To "get it out there"?

Seriously, what the fuck is the problem???

it's funny...remember in the mid-90s,when Prince was touting the Internet,insisting that it's gonna mean the death of large record companies...talking about how artists can sell and promote their music on-line and have more power over their art.He seemed thrilled with the possibilities.

But now it seems he's had a change of heart.The Internet has given people the FREEDOM to download and enjoy music on their own terms.Basically,people can now see and do anything they want on-line,in the privacy of their own home.File-sharing has become a way of life.Prince can't stand this,because it's something that he can't control or dominate.For the first time,he's no longer in control and he hates it.Prince is a notorious control freak and now,this is something that even he can't control.It became bigger and more powerful than he ever imagined.He's pissed.I bet he wishes we could go back to the pre-Internet days,lol.


I guess it's true: sometimes we should be careful what we wish for


.
[Edited 9/18/07 6:14am]

and planet earth dies a quick death.

sosgemini said:

ba-ba-ba
ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba...

I think at this point in Prince's life he has enough money to not give 2 shits if anyone listens to him. Why should he? Listen to his music or dont. I dont think he cares, he cashed in with the 2004 concert and push. Plus all these concerts. He is basically semi-retired enjoying playing vegas - uk - and whenever he wants too.

superspaceboy said:

Well said Bob.

Heiress said:

This is the most likely scenario.

FlamingRaindrop said:

Whilst you or I might say "It's all free publicity" and "No-one is profiting", Prince appears to be saying, "I have the right to choose when and how my work is used for publicity purposes" and "No-one is profiting ... not even me, even though I have a legal right to receive payment for use of my work, which includes when people upload my songs for streaming on Youtube without my consent"

In reality, "Free The Music" meant "Free my music from Warners so I have control over its future use"

langebleu said:

and that says it all, well said.

look, it's not a tirade against his regular fans just the ones who are ripping him off. Any established artist with half an ounce of commercial awareness would surely want to have more control over the many years of hard work and effort spent building up a career.
I'll say it again, many others will follow, in fact there are several other artists doing similar things.