Legal and Technological Battle in Music Industry: Information-Push vs. Information-Pull Technologies

21 Pages Posted: 9 Apr 2004

Date Written: April 5, 2004

Abstract

Peer-to-Peer (P2P) technologies are often seen as a threat by copyright owners because they encourage piracy by making digital copies easier. In response, major record companies have come up with new devices designed to protect original material, and lobbied to reinforce legal protection. We view traditional distribution as an information-push technology in which the firm pays to provide information to consumers and P2P as an information-pull technology where consumers spend resources to acquire information on products they have a potential interest in by searching, downloading and testing digital copies of original products before they make their purchase decision. We determine copyright owners' protection strategies according to the level of legal protection, and we study their effects on profits and consumers' surplus with the two different information transmission technologies.

Keywords: Copyright, Protection, Internet, Distribution, Music, Piracy, Digital copies, Fair Use, Digital Rights Management

JEL Classification: D61, K11, L11, L15, O34

Suggested Citation

Duchene, Anne and Waelbroeck, Patrick, Legal and Technological Battle in Music Industry: Information-Push vs. Information-Pull Technologies (April 5, 2004). Sauder School of Business Working Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=527462 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.527462

Anne Duchene

IPAG Business School ( email )

184 BD Saint Germain
Paris, 75006
France

Patrick Waelbroeck (Contact Author)

Télécom Paris ( email )

19 Place Marguerite Perey
Palaiseau, 91120
France

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