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U2's manager: It is time for ISPs to be real partners

January 30, 2008 | By Sotek | 7 Comments

U2's manager Paul McGuinness addressed the music industry with a rather pathetic speech at MIDEM's first International Manager Summit this week. McGuinness believes ISPs (Internet service providers) are largerly responsible for the decline in music sales and should start filtering p2p traffic and take responsibility for the content their customers are downloading and files they share.

Oh boy. Here we go again!

Today, there's a bigger issue and it's about the whole relationship between the music and the technology business. Network operators, in particular, have for too long had a free ride on music — on our clients' content. It's time for a new approach — time for ISPs to start taking responsibility for the content they've profited from for years.

It's amazing to see and read about those ultra-rich music moguls who think they are too poor, hurt and don't get their fair share. Give me a break! I've said many times before that the problem itself isn't that people do not want to pay for music anymore — the reason why record sales are falling year after year is that there simply isn't demand for crappy music. It is THAT simple.

For ISPs in general, the days of prevaricating over their responsibilities for helping protect music must end. The ISP lobbyists who say they should not have to "police the internet" are living in the past — relying on outdated excuses from an earlier technological age. The internet has moved on since then, and the pace of change today means a year in the internet age is equivalent to a decade in the non-internet world.

McGuinness doesn't get it. He says that "the internet has moved on since then..." — it sure did. So why not the music industry?

It is time for ISPs to be real partners. The safe harbours of the 1990s are no longer appropriate, and if ISPs do not cooperate voluntarily there will need to be legislation to require them to cooperate.

So now when your job is on the line you're forcing others to fix your shit? Come on, man! You can't be serious...

Online Bonanza: Who is making all the money and why aren't they sharing it? [U2.com]

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7 Comments

Florian | January 30, 2008 3:34 AM | Reply

The music industry (not the bands) bloodily flopped and they try to camouflage that. Imagine: in 2006 Universal music had a drop in sales of about 33-35% - a drop regarding ALL genres... That's the background of such words spoken by McGuinness.

In general industry doesn't like changes, especially when it's about profits. That's why people like McGuinness are thinking and speaking about restrictions. In fact it's dictation, a censorship of the internet, a censorship of freedom.

Thoughts like McGuinness mentioned should alert everyone out there, a fortiori if you're not a file sharer at all. Dictation has only one aim: to create slaves, spineless consumers. That will affect everyone, not only filesharing. I think I don't have to mention that such Nazi-like behaviour is absolutely against what music is representing.

Stucky | January 30, 2008 3:47 AM | Reply

U2 destroyed also one of the best independent labels (SST) with a copyright lawsuit. There are complent cu**s.
LINK

Sotek | January 30, 2008 4:00 AM | Reply

@Florian: Amen to everything you wrote above.

Mark | January 31, 2008 8:03 AM | Reply

It astounds me that people like Paul McGuinness have the audacity to stand as a representative for what is apparently fair considering the position they hold. And also to expect anything other than reciprocation with scepticism and disbelief like this in response to what is essentially the publication of a means to more money in their own pocket. If the labels are looking to do anything other than spread their reputation as a bunch of moneygrabbing tasteless whores, perhaps using the spokesperson of the most successful band in the world to do so is somewhat of a mistake. I'm so sick of these guys sitting on their high horse looking for empathy from the little guys. And for fear of nullifying my argument, I'll leave my thoughts on the band out of it...

ahem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EDuK46ZqFM

Jaron | January 31, 2008 11:39 AM | Reply

Firstly, to think that in ten years, one year goes by on the internet is obviously a mistake, I am sure he meant 1 year in the real world is a decade on the Internet.

U2 is a perfect example of why the record industry is failing. They have been around for 100 years and have released 100 records. Who can afford to keep up with these jerks when the music they are releasing now is tripe in comparison to what they were releasing 20 years ago.

Bands like the Ramones, the Sex Pistols, Joy Division (the list goes on and on), didn't sell that many albums, but made a huge impact on music. Where would U2 be without Ian Curtis? Probably in a barber shop quartet. Thankfully, bands that made good music and didn't make much money (or died) made good albums, and left the scene (somewhat).

That's what we need. Just because you have more money than Africa, doesn't mean you can stick around and make crappy albums till the end of time. They suck, get over it.

samim | February 4, 2008 8:32 AM | Reply

ah man, i guess we just have to wait until the generation shit is more advanced and these old stupid pricks reincarnate.

Troy | March 7, 2008 5:32 PM | Reply

This argument is like demanding the local transportation authority take responsibility for illegal goods transported on their highways. Absurd! It's well past time for the music industry to wake up to reality and learn to start using technology for their own marketing and promotional benefit instead of complaining about the inevitable and ultimately uncontrollable sharing of music files.