March 21, 2009

By By Cortney Harding, Austin, Texas

A rousing panel debated the merits of methods for montizing P2P networks at SXSW on Saturday.

Speaking at the "Is Collective Licensing For P2P File Sharing A Future Source For The Music Industry?" discussion, Warner Music Group consultant Jim Griffin, who is currently working college project Choruss, said that his program offers schools the ability to customize programs to make sure students are shielded from liability if they download music.

But Sandy Pearlman, Schulich Distinguished Chair at McGill University, pointed out traditional methods like adding taxes and levies to Internet bills, might already be outdated, as the so-called "dark Internet" grows and the cost of storing music shrinks.

Rick Carnes, the president of the Songwriters Guild of America, said those to seek to monetize P2P traffic should consider the broader questions of the value of music. "If music is free, you don't get music that is good, you get music that is free," he told the audience.

Dina LaPolt, an industry lawyer, raised issues of how P2P monetization programs would effect emerging artists, and also discussed the challenges the industry faces dealing with the millennial generation, who believe every should be immediate and free.

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