Pionts of Contention Against the RIAA

The following defines the logic and sentiments of those who believe that the RIAA operates in a monopolistic and abusive manner against artists, consumers, and competitors.

The RIAA currently acts as a monopolistic enterprise by definition of the Sherman Antitrust Act.

The RIAA represents 85-90% of all music currently produced in the United States including the countries five largest record labels: Sony (Japan), BMG (Germany), EMI (UK), Vivendi Universal (France) and AOL/Warner (USA). These “Big Five” account for 90% of the RIAA’s annual revenue. It is the interests of these five that are promoted above all. Using this unprecedented clout in size and money the RIAA has taken numerous actions to defraud artists, overcharge consumers, and eliminate competition unwilling to follow their “industry standards.”

Article I. The RIAA has Exercised Vertical and Horizontal Restraint of Trade on the Industry to Inflate CD Prices

In an August 2000 lawsuit, 28 states plus the commonwealths of the Northern Mariana’s and Puerto Rico accused that the Big Five “colluded with the major music retail chains to artificially maintain the price of

It is contended that the current lawsuits over file sharing are aimed at the same purpose. Though file sharing has set a difficult time on the industry as a whole, it has allowed consumers to find and hear artists on alternative labels, thus helping to offset the loss of CD sales for many small record labels. “For such professionals (independent artists), Napster-type sites are more likely to boost sales, even if such sites encourage some users not to do any buying. The Internet has become the average music fan's only way to find out about non-mainstream music… for struggling independent labels, business is booming for the first time in decades,” writes Geoff Eisler. For members of the RIAA, this equal promotion is unacceptable and they have made it painfully clear to the American public that it will not be tolerated, filing lawsuits against seventy-one year old grandfathers and twelve year old girls, carefully selecting from the millions of Americans that openly admit to downloading music.

“Copyrights were designed to ensure that after a short time, art and science would become public so that everyone could benefit from them -- but they have been hijacked,” writes www.evilsite.org.

Independent Artists and Labels have come to represent an antithesis to the practices of the RIAA. This has made them a prime target for the RIAA. Through mass media control, the RIAA in coalition with Clear Channel, have limited promotional devices for competitors.

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