AfterDawn: News

Wippit demand music industry boycott firms that advertise on P2P services

UK digital music firm Wippit are calling upon the music industry to boycott major firms it accuses of fueling illegal P2P services by paying the services for advertisement. On Wippit's list include well known names such as Vodafone, O2, NTL, Renault, MSN subsidiaries Expedia and bCentral, First Direct, Halifax and Natwest. Many of these companies have claimed that their advertisements appearances on P2P related sites and services was a mistake and caused by human error. Services related to the eDonkey network were the most common.

Wippit CEO, Paul Myers stated that these companies give "financial oxygen" to "pirate services" and "copyright violators". "If you're supporting a company that is not supporting you, or they are supporting a business that aims to put you out of business by giving your property away for free, follow me by dumping them until they change their ways." he said in an open letter addressing the music industry.



Developing and running P2P services for now is still legal in most countries and it is legal for major companies to pay these services for advertisement. However, when you remember that most of the companies listed above use music from major record labels for their TV advertisements, you can predict their reactions to this claim made by Wippit.

Source:
The Register

Written by: James Delahunty @ 30 Oct 2004 21:18

• Previous article

• RIAA sues another 750 P2P users

• Next article

• HD-DVD to get support from studios

• 4 comments

• MXGzX

  how about they just make the stuff ad free.
  no more problems

  30.10.2004 21:34 #1

• Dela

  Well things rthis would concern would be like Bit Torrent sites and eD2K linking sites that have huge abndwidth transfers, hence, have huge bandwidth bills. Advertisement is the option to use!

  30.10.2004 21:53 #2

• progrockt

  OH DARN! You mean no more Jethro Tull or Led Zeppelin songs during car commercials!?!?! No Beatles songs during Nike commercials!?!?
  
  What a loss for the rock community!

  31.10.2004 05:28 #3

• strcruzer

  Here is the next step of the RIAA plan, kill of P2P by attacking their advertisers. This just goes to show their real motives doesn't it? Kill of P2P so the RIAA members have total control.
  
  I wouldn't doubt it for a minute that that wuss Paul Myers, Wippit CEO, was put up to this by the RIAA and/or they are looking for more business by kissing their collective asses.
  
  Paul, you need to smell the coffee dude. P2P is a workable business model you just need to start using that brain of yours (to the RIAA also) we are not going to let you tell us how we can get our content. We choose a method that pays the artists not the money grubbing corporations.
  
  Starcruiser

  1.11.2004 08:46 #4