Windowing, manipulation, CDs, Pirates and Information Literacy

It is interesting to me that Kusek & Leonhard, both of whom appear to be intelligent, engaged individuals are not more critical of the consumer cycle that they are projecting in the future. I think much of what they discuss will come to pass in one form or another, whether in the exact prescribed manner or not is up for discussion. However, when discussion their ideas, they do not seem that concerned that the consumption pattern they describe is excessive, destructive to environment and artists, unsustainable or manipulative.

The first example of this is the discussion of the movie business’s “windowing.” First, big movie studios do the same thing that ‘big music’ does, concentrating its money and marketing power on blockbuster movies instead of seeding lots of smaller movies. Also, they saturate the market with advertisements not once, not twice, but up to seven times to squeeze as much money out of consumers as possible. Why do Kusek & Leonhard not have a problem with this? If ‘big music’ had allowed different formats to take hold in music, why would they advocate a system that would then let ‘big music’ push Britney Spears on the kids not once, twice but up to seven or eight times? Had ‘big music’ (as a side note, as a co-creator of MIDI, is Kusek not part of the music industry establishment?) adopted this style, I feel that Kusek & Leonhard are arguing, then they would not be in as much trouble. But I thought they wanted to see the industry destroyed or at least reinvented?

Also, having the multiple formats and cycling the product through each with a corresponding media and marketing push is manipulative. It does not fill a consumer need. This practice instead feeds on a darker part of capitalism, that which pushes consumers to consume and consume because of a perceived unfilled need, which has probably either been filled or is non-existent.

I am not sure I agree about the demise of the CD. Or if I do, I am not sure how quickly it will happen. It seems that lots of people still purchase CDs or vinyl at live shows. Maybe these are more mementos. Will downloads start being sold at shows or will it be assumed that audiences will buy from iTunes after or during the show?

I wholeheartedly agree with Kusek & Leonhard’s argument that downloading tracks from Limewire, Kazaa or one of the other P2P services should not be treated the same as the widespread piracy operations. I had never heard this argument articulated before, and I found myself saying, ”Yes, that makes absolute sense!” for the first time since beginning this text. The scale of the two different, currently illegal activities is very different. Someone selling pirated goods is looking to profit off someone else’s work. Someone downloading popular or obscure tracks is looking to enjoy them, or maybe impress their friends.

Now that I’ve briefly agreed with the authors, it’s time to disagree again! I am trying very hard to take Dr. Simon’s advice to not miss the forest for the trees, but I am critical of some of the ideas and assertions. On page 99, the authors assert that kids seek out information more agilely and proactively than their parents. From my LIBR 200 class, I know that kids, especially teenagers, often overestimate their information literacy skills. Sure, they can maybe find the shortcuts to the latest video game, but are they really good at not only finding information but also evaluating it? I think the authors are confusing comfort with technology and information literacy – though I wonder how familiar they are with the second term.