Canter nails it on 'fair use'

In response to the Nov. 20 column by Marc Canter, "What constitutes fair use?":

Canter hits the proverbial nail right on the head. Music conglomerates punish both sides--the artist and the consumer. The industry ignores the obvious: Those bent on being thieves can always circumvent the system. It was true in the analog world, it's true in the digital world, and it will be true in the next big format.

I hear about these new copy-protected CDs and I just cringe. Why is it that when MP3 player makers are catering to such an obvious demand (for instance, with the Apple iPod), record companies would prevent me from fairly accessing my music more conveniently?

And if I'm such I pirate, why have I paid for the same content solely because the media changed--LPs to cassettes to CDs? Where's my rebate for already owning a copy? I know the industry kept CD prices artificially high when the cost of reproduction fell sharply. I didn't see much of a price change after that was revealed.

As far as I'm concerned, the buck stops at MP3s. I'm certainly never going to pay a monthly service fee because they decide that's the latest trick to pick my pocket.

Richard Cardona
Cedar Park, Texas