> I find this analogous to saying software engineers shouldn't be paid because they like playing with computers. It's not though. Labor prices are set by the i

> I find this analogous to saying software engineers shouldn't be paid because they like playing with computers. It's not though. Labor prices are set by the interaction of supply and demand, and quite simply the supply of creativity (especially music) far outstrips the demand for it. The vast majority of the general public would probably be perfectly content with there only be 1000 musicians in the world, so there's not inherently high demand. On the flip side, there is huge supply. People make music because its fun——lots of people make it as a hobby. Very few people write actual business-ready apps just for fun. This interaction of supply and demand applies just as much to programmers. Salaries for game programmers aren't lower because game programming is somehow easier or in less demand, but because it seems fun so the supply is huge. Until you somehow convince most people to not be hobbyist artists (reducing supply) or to listen to way more different music (increase demand), it's going to be impossible to find lucrative business-to-fan business models.