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Nice flash movie! I love Jack White. I saw the White Stripes twice in three days last summer and they were both amazing shows. Recommend everyone go see them. It doesn't surprise me that he said ok to the Steve's revisions, he's pretty down to earth. Very smart too. Realistically, how would he stop Steve from doing what he was doing anyway? How could Jack stop me from doing it in my living room, and then playing it for my friends?
Maybe I just have a laid back approach to it all. I have had people email me for permission to use stuff that was actually mine on my website, and my response was don't even ask, just take whatever you want. I have seen images that I have scanned appear on Ebay, as well as the descriptions I made on the site posted there to EXACTLY as it is on my site. I don't care. I actually think it is funny. Flattering maybe. The point is if someone makes a cool million off something I did, good for them. I really don't care.
You mentioned filesharing. The vast majority of bands get paid $X UPFRONT, lets say $250,000 to make an album. The band uses that money for studio time, lawyers, etc etc merchandise, all usually provided by or recommended by the recording company. Once an album is released, it hurts the recording company the most, as the band has usually made all they will make unless they are contracted further, which is rare. The band's real hope for making money lies in touring, and many times if they don't draw big crowds, they rely on the sale of the merchandise at shows to keep the tour going. I have seen this all first hand so I know a little bit about it. That being said, I have ZERO sympathy for the record exes, the RIAA, or anyone else who makes big money off the bands hard work. Jack White actually produces his own stuff, as well as Whirlwind Heat, the band that opens for them, so he is actually smart about the whole process.
And $250,000 might sound like a lot of money, but truthfully, but the time it is all said in done, I have seen bands owe $10,000 or more from the merchandise they had made.
I don't really know who is to blame, the record execs who make a good deal for themselves and screw the band, or the band who is just trying to get their name out there. But I do know for sure that if you want to reward a band for the music they play, buying the CD is a tiny bit compared to seeing them on tour. I am glad file sharing is screwing the foundation of the music industry because it does need an enema. I-tunes, or whatever. . . please. You don't even need Kaza to distribute files, you can do it right in MSN Messenger! Now no one but Microsoft would actually see it if they were paying attention. I think it is great. It doesn't hurt the bands as much as it is hurting the companies, which I am totally for. I'd like to see the entire industry get rebuilt.
Well, now back to GW. If GW wasn't so hardheaded they could be everyone's favorite company. Maybe I haven't seen some examples in court where they have had to defend themselves. I remember a long time ago I bought some minis of some robots that looked a lot like terminators to use for custom mechs in Battletech, and I heard later the company got sued because they looked too much like GW's stuff. Truthfully, GW's terminators were much much better than these minis. That kind of annoyed me a little. They weren't direct copies, but you could see GW influenced the design.
Imagine if Orcs, Elves and Dwarves were copyrighted and own by one guy. Kind of lame if you ask me.
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