Cops vs Lawyers: RIAA vs Semiotic Democracy

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The Supreme Court ruled against filesharing technologies like Grokster and Limewire today, in a case that was brought before it by groups like the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). They successfully argued that such peer-to-peer networks are solely designed to get around copyright law. However, if you are a musician hustling to reach an audience, you know that filesharing is also a great way to get around the music industry and distribute your product worldwide. In issue three, SHOUT ran the following article leading up to the high court's decision...

By Mike Conway

The creative landscape is changing. Technologies like Pro Tools, the iPod, and peer-to-peer networks have become mainstream in the digital age, creating a wild frontier of sorts in music. Rather than struggling to break into radio, musicians can find a mass audience without a major record deal. These technologies are fostering the rise of “semiotic democracy”—where more and more people are no longer passive consumers of mass media, but active participants in creating culture.

The music industry is part of a waning guard, and it fears it will be eclipsed by this new landscape. But the industry refuses to simply take a bow, or even roll with these changes. Instead, it has released the hounds of law onto the backbone of semiotic democracy: the internet...

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