Not so long ago, the public acquired music by purchasing, borrowing from others, or, in rare cases, stealing physical media. For most listeners, the question was straightforward: should I spend money and acquire or hold my dollars and forgo the music? While musicians continued to release music, there was no limit to the potential revenue gained from new works.

But copyright law reflected the idea that creations could only solely benefit their creators for a certain number of years after release. After this time, the work was released into the public domain where anybody could build upon such output.

Then the internet arrived and soon anybody with a computer and a connection could download for free almost any piece of art capable of being reproduced digitally. Removed from its physical constraints, the singular approach acquiring art was challenged. Users could now choose whether or not to pay for art, and for what reasons.

Such new approaches included:-

Buy online as per the old days;

Download for free and buy if the music was of sufficient quality; and

Download for free without question.

It would be safe to assume that many casual listeners have downloaded Prince's music for free and will never pay for it. On the other hand, the loyalty of many fans has kept them paying for Prince's releases. Devoted listeners want to support their artist and feel that it is fair to pay for his art.

But technology allows us to question the old paradigm of to purchase and acquire or not to purchase and not acquire. As with copyright time-based limitations, could there be situations under which even fans might justify choosing to download Prince's music for free?

There are certainly arguments in favor of downloading Prince's music for free. It could be suggested that Prince should only be allowed to acquire so much wealth, no matter what and how much he produces. Concentration of wealth, and thus also power, increases inequality, which harms society overall. Too much wealth frequently leads to greed. Instead of money going to basic living requirements, it is spent on unnecessary luxuries, such as LA mansions and other extravagances.

Has Prince already gained too much wealth, does he live in too much luxury, have his judgments (such as the decision to release Lotusflow3r exclusively through Target) become too impaired by wealth, has his art only been dulled by his vast wealth? Does society gain from Prince being so rich and, if not, should he continue to get even richer? Is it only Prince who should be paying attention to the Biblical teaching that "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God"?

One might also download Prince's music for free as a reflection of their opinion about, for instance, his litigation against fans for uploading Youtube videos, his hounding of Housequake.org and other fan websites, his support of Target, or even the quality of his newer music.

Others might say that the industry of recorded music itself has had its time. Now, the public should be allowed to acquire any music they like and artists should make money through live performances, as was the case before the era of mass-consumed recorded music. Perhaps music itself is a public domain good.

Of course, the old perspective remains that art is the artist's and that listeners should either accept the terms of the offer or not get the art. Does the ability alone to download for free circumvent this argument?

Fans are now free to evaluate and adopt any of these new paradigms. Old ideas and methods are giving way and the new destination is far from clear.

What will you do when Lotusflow3r is released?

Did you really just ask if the fact that something is easy to steal makes it right to steal it?

if you go to a friends house and see a $20 bill laying on his counter, do you put it in your pocket? Does it matter at all ethically if your friend is rich or poor?

[Edited 3/21/09 22:36pm]
[Edited 3/21/09 22:38pm]

no. he doesnt need your money.

alandail said:

Agree completely! It is never right to steal! In all fairness, however I must add that I understand the temptation Prince fans have for downloading or desiring unreleased material! When Prince doesn't make certain music available for sale, it is hard to not want to listen to it! Regardless, I don't download, heck, I wouldn't even know how!

since when does GIVING mean someone else is stealing?

gubbins4ever said:

I'm'a just get a job AT Target (in the receiving department), and watch my collection grow, as I tell everybody about it on the interwebs.