UMG Doug "You are all Pirates" Morris eyes iPod

This has gone on long enough. Time to remove the record company "middle men" from the picture entirely. They are no longer wanted or needed. You can build a professional multi-track recording studio for peanuts these days. Have Apple hire some good producers, let the artists come in and record everything straight to digital, and sell it on-line. The artist gets a piece, and Apple gets a piece. End of issue.

Time for "record" companies to go the way of the record. Obsolete.

That's insane.
What if my iPod doesn't have songs from UMG since...ever?
Oh Apple please, don't do what Microsoft does.

Ok Mr. Morris, go ahead with your $1 out of every iPod plan. In fact, I think all studios should follow his lead.

That way, when I get sued for copyright infringement, I can tell the judge, "I already paid for my music when I bought my iPod - They took a buck from me to pay for it!"

I swear, this is going to backfire so badly for the studios, because they're all f'ing idiots.

"Better to be a Pirate than join the Navy"
-SPJ

Here's an article that basically states what Hugh pointed out: the artists will only start to see the proceeds of such a deal if Microsoft sets new sales records with the Zune:

http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=3919

Other articles have speculated that of the $1 per Zune royalty, UMG pockets $0.50, and the rest goes to the artist. If somehow the Zune hits 1 million in sales, UMG pockets $500k, and (estimating a roster of 5,000 artists), each artists gets $100 - not even enough to buy their own Zune.

However, that $500k might just be enough for UMG to bribe some radio stations into playing some Lindsey Lohan songs.

I'm amazed that anybody actually listens the the trollop (I refuse to use the term 'music') that Universal produces.

Can't we just delete them off the iTS and have done with it?

I always believed that Apple should pay . Not to record companies but to publishers so the money goes to artists. Whenever you buy a blank CD, some of that money goes to the artists via ascap,bmi,sesac.

Imagine if something that YOU created lost its value and was passed around for free.

Dougie and his lot are the robbers -- they have sold me the some songs up to 14 times: on LP disc, cassette and CD often regurgitating the same songs as fillers in albums time and again. Ever notice how short some albums became?
As well, they sold me short -- often selling me 3 or 4 decent songs in an album and filling up the rest with chaff.
In all that time, the artists also got a raw deal -- just ask them.
If this greedy pirate gets his way, I wonder what the distribution of the ill-gotten loot will be? I'll wager now that not one artist will get a single cent more!
Dougie should hang his head in shame for pulling that swiftie over Microsoft -- the latter has gone Soft in the head!

How much of that "royalty" fee goes to the artists?
I'm guessing the number is around $0.00.

Why does he have his eye's set on the ipod and not ALL computer companies? You download stolen music on the computer and then use the computer to add it to the ipod. It doesn't just automatically appear on a mp3 player by itself.
He must have his hands in somebodies pockets... oh that's right, he does....