Instead of buying Compact Discs people now have access to MP3 players, but it is not inexpensive. For example, the Ipod by apple computers is a brilliant device that holds up to 10,000 songs (Ipod1). It seems like the individual who buys the Mp3 player gets what they pay for, but th

Napsters affect on society has made some people think downloading music will get them arrested. The majority of the people are for it but some people think it is unmoral. There are no real negative effects on society except the music industry part. Free music has inspired everyone including companies such as Apple, which brought forth the creation of the Ipod. Mp3 players like the Ipod do not offer free music but they offer it cheap and it has made a lot of money considering it is still around. Napster also set the foundation for better programs like Kazaa, which still makes it possible for people to listen to music. The music industry is still angry at the fact that when they get one program down another one is created, causing bands like Metallica to file law suits. That is out of proportion considering they are a very popular band. They think it will show who their true fans are, or show how greedy they are about money. Other musicians have come up with other ideas to get people to buy their albums. Shady records which was founded by Eminem, Came up with the idea of putting a “Golden ticket” inside three Compact Discs and whoever gets the ticket gets to spend a day in the recording studio with Eminem and all the other Musicians under Shady records (Wiederhorn 1). Second prize winners receive a $12,500 diamond-studded G-Unit medallion, The symbol for the Rap group, G-unit (Wiederhorn 2). Another way artists have been getting people to buy more records is by adding extras to the real Compact Disc when it is paid for. Extras include Digital Video Disc extras, which include concert footage and studio footage that cannot be seen anywhere else and songs that are able to be put onto the computer and be remixed (Wiederhorn 2). Some of society is a bit disappointed with this free music matter but the musicians have come up with positive ideas like the golden ticket contest. Most of the music world is adapting to this big change but Metallica refuses to deal with free music in an orderly way.

In 1999, an 18 year old college drop named Shawn Fanning changed the way music was to be heard by creating a program that shares Mp3’s anywhere in the world (Rowell 3). “The controversial Napster program was developed by former Northeastern University student Fanning when he was 18.” (Rowell 3). The invention of this program influenced other Internet users to make better programs for finding free music. Fanning was very popular among most of the Internet users but instantly became one of the most hated people in the music industry. Bands, and record labels were not happy that people could now get music for free and be able to put it on Compact Discs. The leading band that outlawed Napster was the band Metallica. Lars Ulrich, Metallicas drummer was especially angry out of his whole band because songs Metallica made were being put on the Internet and they did not want those songs to get out (Metallica 1). Ulrich gave Napster 60,000 pages of Napster users and had them banned from Napsters server (Metallica 1). These actions caused Metallica to lose a lot of fans because of the reaction that was given to the public, and the fact that the band contradicted themselves, because to the members music was supposed to be about fun, but the reactions to this new music program proved otherwise. When Napster was up and running for free they had about one and a half million users in one weekend (Rowell 2). That number will most likely go down when the record companies make the Napster program something that has to be paid for. Metallica is overreacting for trying to stop everyone from downloading music. At this point it is becoming unstoppable and the only way is to just let it go. If the band has loyal fans then they will go out and buy the new Metallica Compact Disc to support the band.

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