Sponsor's Message

As we invent newer, better and faster ways to perform various tasks, the old ways get left behind.

When was the last time you bought or used a sheet of carbon paper for instance?

When I was a young lad (and dinosaurs roamed the earth), you'd find a packet or two of carbon paper in virtually every office on the face of the planet.

There was simply no cheaper or simpler method of producing multiple copies of a letter or other document than to use two pieces of paper with a sheet of "carbon" in between.

Then came the computer, the word processor and the availability of low-cost, high-quality printers.

Within the span of a few short years, sales of carbon paper plummeted as this new technology allowed people to print as many "original" copies of their letters and documents as they wanted.

What happened to those companies that made carbon paper?

I don't know, however I suspect those who had half a brain quickly realised that there was no future in continuing to try and sell a product for which there was no longer a market.

Readers Say (updated irregularly) From Yesterday... Xtra's ridiculous terms... - Dave just an idea... - Just Xtra's arrogance... - James feedback... - Nathan Xtra... - Paul Two line Rentals To get ADSL... - Wally isp to isp liability?... - Rob Have Your Say

But hang on, what has all this wonderful nostalgia and memories of blue fingers got to do with computers, the Net or whatever?

Well I believe a good analogy can be drawn between the fate of the carbon-paper manufacturers and that of the recording industry.

Once upon a time, not too long ago, the recording industry made lots of money by creating wonderful products that most of us bought and enjoyed.

Piracy wasn't really much of a problem. Consumer audio recording equipment was fairly crude and even the most expensive tape decks would still result in a copy that was degraded when compared to the original -- and you could forget about making an copy of a copy, the resulting recording sounded hideous.

But now things have changed -- a lot.

Just about every home in first-world countries has a PC and most of those PCs have an internet connection and a CD burner.

Now there are no technical barriers to finding others who have the material you want and making copies of it. The P2P file-trading networks have seen to that.

What's more, thanks to digital technology, every copy is identical to the original so, in theory, a single audio disk can now spawn enough copies to supply everyone on the planet.

It strikes me that there is now absolutely no practical way that the music industry can stem the growth of piracy -- any more than the manufacturers of carbon paper could stop the sales of word processors and computers.

Unfortunately the music industry's current "head in the sand" attitude to the fundamental changes which have been brought about by advancing technology will likely deal them a deathly blow.

Just like those carbon paper makers, the recording industry must wake up to the fact that there is no longer the same demand for their products -- at least when marketed in the traditional manner.

Just stop and think about it -- who is going to pay good money for a CD (sorry, an "Enhanced Audio Disc") when they can:

• Download the same music from a P2P network.
• Capture the same music from TV or radio and save in MPEG or MP3 format
• Burn a copy of a friends disk with no loss of quality, even if the source disk is itself a copy of a copy.

And remember -- pirating music is unlikely to result in death or injury -- but we're told that speeding is one of the major causes of fatal road smashes. So which is the more serious crime?

To the music industry I say -- stop what you're doing right now. Walk around your offices and compare the number of packets of carbon paper you find with the number of PCs. Time for a change?

Adapt or die.

Xtra's IP Grab
I know you're probably sick of this subject by now but I thought I'd give you a heads-up on a development that I hope to break tomorrow or Monday.

I think I may have discovered what prompted Xtra to change its Service Terms -- and believe me, it's not a pretty story.

And of course if any Aardvark readers have an opinion on today's column or want to add something you're also invited to chip in and have your say.

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