Carnegie Mellon professor Roger Dannenberg writes about "Music stealing all around" in rebuttal to RIAA president Cary Sherman's Letter to the Editor on "stealing" music on campus.

Sherman wants "a climate where creativity is valued".

Dannerberg responds "I teach students how, historically, the major recording labels have dominated the recording industry, refusing to record some of America's greatest artists, including Louis Armstrong. (His first recordings were manufactured by a former piano company in Indiana, which was sued by the major labels of the day for patent infringement.)"

Sherman seeks "responsible use of network resources."

Dannerberg counters "My students also learn how the broadcasting industry, dominated by NBC and CBS, ignored recording technology until the NBC monopoly was broken up by the FCC. The innovations in magnetic recording for broadcast introduced by the struggling ABC were a major step forward, enabling the modern recording industry and even modern computer technology."

Sherman says stealing "is not OK."

Dannerberg concludes "I have musician friends who cannot get RIAA members to pay them the royalties they are due. While you are asking universities to address your problems, please don't forget that you too can be a 'powerful leader in curbing theft of copyright materials on campus.' If you'll stop your members from stealing from my friends, and then study some history, maybe I can help you."

Marc Freedman
RazorPop, developer of TrustyFiles, the leading multiple network P2P file sharing software
Are you a major entertainment company or marketer? Then you need BrandedP2P.
Are you an independent artist or small content provider? Check out the Do-It-Yourself P2P Street Team.