Binokular Veteran Member Posts:1665  
| 1/22/2004 11:45 AM |
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IRMA have taken action against website CDWOW which used to be able CDs for around 14 Euro. They will now have to sell CDs at higher prices. This really sucks for music fans, because now we have to pay more for new release/chart CDs. As far as I can see it does not benefit Irish artists either because the CDs were legit, and royalties were being paid (admittedly at lower far east rates). Whats more, the vast majority of the CDs sold on CDWow were not by Irish artists anyway. The only people this seems to benefit are greedy retailers. It all seems very similar to the issues car manufacturers have with so called "grey" imports.
So what do you think, are IRMA justified? or are they just greedy? if they have a real legal basis for this, should the law be changed?
here's the article from the Irish Independent:
http://www.unison.ie/irish_independ...e_id=10333
INTERNET vendor CDWow will no longer be able to import cut price CDs to Ireland from outside Europe, following settlement of its dispute with the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA).
From Sunday, consumers will have to pay a surcharge of €3 on each CD purchased from CDWow after it settled cases with IRMA and the British Phonographic Industry, which said they were flouting trade laws.
CDWow has been offering prices of around €14 for best-selling CDs, compared with high street prices of around €22 in many cases.
IRMA said CDWow had been illegally selling CDs from Hong Kong which, though legitimate versions, were purchased at a much lower price than in Europe and subject to much lower royalty rates for artists.
"I am delighted that we have been able to resolve this case on agreed terms without the need for a trial," said Dick Doyle, Director General of IRMA.
CDWow owner Philip Robinson said last night the deal will dampen CD sales as a whole, because people who bought two or three a month might buy only one now, if they are no longer regarded as good value.
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flagman Basic Member Posts:150
| 1/22/2004 12:32 PM |
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Yeah, I got a mail from CDWOW stating all this this morning. It's ERMA and the British Phonographic Industry Ltd apparently.
Not sure of the in's and out's of it but it seems like a jip to me.
I actually used to order from www.cd-wow.com.hk where I could CD's for a tenner, alas no more it would seem.
It's pretty s**te really, now that I think about it, one of the advantages of internet shopping is getting a bargain and now they're sticking on some nonsense charge!
Time to riot I think.
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flagmanBasic Member Posts:150
| 1/22/2004 12:43 PM |
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Actually, yer man who owns CDWOW, Philip Robinson, made a good point about record sales going down.
I've been buying CD's on CDWOW regularly enough recently and I'd usually buy 3 at a time.
That'll be cut down now, in fact I probably won't bother with new releases at all, before CDWOW I'd just pick up stuff on sale or second hand.
Don't know about anyone else, but it physically hurts just thinking about paying €20 or so for an album.
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Vent My Spleen Advanced Member Posts:500
| 1/22/2004 12:58 PM |
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Sickening, just sickening. If the music industry had its way, the interweb would be turned off. I really don't see the logic of what they are doing - I bought more new CDs from CDWOW over the last year than I have done in ages. Now I shall be back to trawling the second hand shops and ebay for my bargains (a situation where neither the artist or record company get any revenue).
Once again the punter suffers. I do wonder what they will do if a similar operation opened in Hungary or one of the new EU states where cost of living is substantially lower than Ireland? What excuses would be used then?
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KarlitoBasic Member Posts:210
| 1/22/2004 1:09 PM |
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Indded it's just another attack on the consumers in my opinion. As far as I'm aware when I buy from internet based companies it's cutting out the middle man, therefore reducing the price.
The extra €3 per CD, where is it going? Who is getting it? Is it the artists? I doubt it very much. And if it's not going to the artists then it's going to some fat dude at the top lining his pockets!! And I doubt it's going back into the Irish music industry to help up and coming bands.
The whole idea was that it wasn't fair on the Irish Consumer, from their point of view, and that it was not bringing money into the Irish economy - well in all honesty, the consumers (us) are getting ripped off once again until we find another way around paying hard earned cash for new CD's.
Personally I'm just gonna go back to buying 2nd hand CD's from the likes of City Discs or going to sites like secondspin.com.
Thats enough ranting from me.
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| 1/22/2004 1:49 PM |
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Goddamn bastards.
First Napster and now this. I've bought loads of stuff from CDWOW and it looks like this will be coming to an end. Jesus H, it's such a shame that the music industry is so contrived and controlled by a bunch of money grabbing executive slobs that are only interested in filling up their already bulging bank balances. It really pisses me off that it costs about a quid to produce a cd but we now have little choice but pay 22 times that amount for it.
f**king lousy bunch of greedy f**ks.
![](/snitz/images/icon_smile_angry.gifborder="0")
A very disgruntled Q2
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BinokularVeteran Member Posts:1665
| 1/22/2004 3:05 PM |
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I think one effect this will have on my CD buying is that I will probably buy less "mainstream" cds on initial release in preference to releases from smaller record companies. This isn't indie snobbery, its just that CDs from smaller record labels tend not too stay in print for long so you have to grab em when their released (try finding a new copy of "Horsedrawn wishes" by Rollerskate skinny for example). More mainstream CDs on big record labels tend to stay in print, you can still go into almost any record store and buy most of the Beatles or Radioheads albums, so its not a problem to wait until you find the CD reduced in a sale. Theres no urgency to purchase, the CD will still be available for many years, I can wait for it to reach the bargain bin.
Also small record labels will often sell you CDs directly and theres nothing retailers can do to stop this. I bought a CD direct from a small record label recently, it cost me 12 US dollars plus postage (I think altogether about 15-16 Euros if I remember correctly).
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| 1/22/2004 8:42 PM |
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hey karlito, tell us more about secondspin.com. i just had a quick look at their site. are they reliable? how quickly do they ship to ireland? what are the delivery charges like?
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BinokularVeteran Member Posts:1665
| 1/23/2004 8:05 AM |
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You might also want to check www.spun.com its a similar idea. They deliver to Ireland, delivery charges/times are similar to amazon. The only down side is you can't sell your stuff to them. It would be great if someone set up an Irish site like this, where you can sell your stuff without paying for postage.
Amazon also sell second hand CDs too. |
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KarlitoBasic Member Posts:210
| 1/23/2004 10:03 AM |
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Second Spin is pretty reliable, if I buy CD's off them I usally get about 5 or 6 at a time cause it's aMerican based website.
Normally they are delivered within about week adn they are pretty secure, they'll not rip you off.
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Vent My SpleenAdvanced Member Posts:500
| 1/24/2004 2:17 PM |
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Equally irritating in this whole thing has been the matter-of-fact reporting one the event in the media, who have basically swallowed the record industry spin (keeping jobs in their high street shops, supporting local bands etc). Anyone who has ever bought a CD over the web cannot believe this is happening and the media certainly does not reflect this outrage.
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john@soundweb.ieBasic Member Posts:201
| 1/26/2004 10:00 AM |
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i think IRMA should give us an explanation. there are so many questions. where is the money going? how do they think this will affect cd sales in ireland? exactly what is the difference between royalties paid in asia and here in europe?
and while we are at it - we will ask them about the legalities of copy-protect CD's that do not inform us of same on the box.
anyone know how to get a petition going?!
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EricBasic Member Posts:179
| 1/26/2004 3:16 PM |
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Over the weekend I heard an interview with Philip Robinson on the business hour on Today fm. He was talking about how Cdwow operates. Basically they import cheaper CDs from around the world, not just Asia, based on the best available price and quantity, its perfectly legal and the CDs are the same as we would buy here. The reason the CDs in these countries are cheaper is because the record companies lower the price so they can be purchased in poorer markets.
The economists on Today FM thought this was outrageous and possibly illegal that record companies fluctuate the price of their product around the world to get the best deal possible. It also exposes how we are being fleeced here by paying €20 for a CD compared to €10 in say... Hong Kong.
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