> I doubt Google was buying content. It bought the ability to communicate to an established audience. An audience that was established, by YouTube founders own

> I doubt Google was buying content. It bought the ability to communicate to an established audience. An audience that was established, by YouTube founders own admission (did you read the article?), via the illegal content hosted there! And Google, by the way, was fully aware of this -- if you look at the depositions in the case you'll note reams of Google emails discussing this aspect of the purchase. > EMI is not in trouble because of YouTube. Well, not only because of YouTube (Kazaa, Napster, filesharers, etc. are also co-responsible), but YouTube is certainly a factor in the decline of recorded music sales, a decline which has had an undeniably pejorative impact on labels like EMI. > It is so cheap now to produce a record that artists can do it in their bedroom. Even creating a record label is inexpensive. Irrelevant -- it makes no difference if your album costs 50% or even 99% less to make if you can't monetize it by selling copies. > Really I cannot understand why the record industry isn't making record profits with the ability to create Allow me to enlighten you: because no one's buying records. > I know of artists that have used YouTube and other online media to get noticed, one may be signed to EMI recently. Of course, and to the extent that they submit their videos and content out of their own free volition, more power to them. My beef is with the a*sh&les that put music and other content on YouTube without permission. As for being signed to EMI -- as mentioned above, that may well very soon be counter-productive, notably if they enter administration. > One thing is for sure, there will be more choice for the music buyer of the future. Something that I think is wonderful. I totally agree. I'm a musician, and I really, genuinely, love music! Why else would I quit a rather lucrative career as a quant at a hedge fund in order to go into a business which is literally haemorrhaging (shameless plug: http://www.myspace.com/martindifeo http://www.myspace.com/martindifeo). You can accuse me of many things, but you can't accuse me of being in music for the money :) That said, I'd like to earn a respectable income from my music-making activities, and I think I could do it if intellectual property rights were enforced. No, I'm not asking for government assistance other than upholding and enforcing already-existing law.