CDs. Video games. DVDs. Books. Buying used copies of these things may save you a couple of bucks, but can it really be hurting what you love in the long run?

There are a great many places you can buy used video games, music, books and DVDs online, but does that mean you should do it? One consequence of buying used goods that many people do not think about is that it’s taking money away from the artist behind the craft. By saving a couple of dollars on a disc or book, you’re cutting into an artist’s profit which then slows or stops progress on future content because it’s seen as less of a profitable financial venture.

What makes it even worse is that for the most part only a small percentage of the money that is earned by sales goes to the artists themselves. The fact of the matter is the goal of the music and game industry is to sell you plastic discs, not create something comparable to a piece of art. This is exhibited by some music artists getting less than a dollar per album sold, and then having to pay back a loan for using the record company’s studio before seeing any profit.

My feelings on the subject are that by buying used media, you are essentially beating an already wounded animal. While I hate to think that $13 of a $15 CD will go to executives and lawyers of a huge corporation, it irks me even more to think of an artist who is being so badly ripped off by people who may or may not even care about the art behind the music. There are exceptions of course, because there are artists who I will not name that are nothing more than a bland corporate puppet that puts out music solely for the purpose of taking your hard-earned cash.

It’s always refreshing to me to see an artist stand up to their overlords and say, “No.” Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails is one such example of someone who has gone into great detail over his problems with the music industry. He noticed that the game industry has the same problem. During a concert in Australia, he asked the fans if the prices of CDs had gone down, which was answered with a resounding, no.

“Steal it,” said Reznor. “Steal away. Steal and steal and steal some more, and give it to all your friends and keep on stealing.” 
Reznor said it wasn’t right for record companies to rip fans off and he hoped that one way or another, music executives got this message through their heads.

While The Skyline View does not endorse theft, Reznor makes a great point. The only way that huge companies are going to get the message across that we won’t stand for their greed is if we hurt their wallets. That’s why I personally have made it a point to stop buying CDs and DVDs for the most part, and supporting more independent artists and video game designers.

The application known as Steam for PCs and Macs sells a lot of independent games, so that’s a great place to go if you need your fix. As for music, there are many great independent artists out there. Nine Inch Nails has since gone independent of a record label since the remarks made at the concert mentioned earlier. Jonathan Coulton and a duo called Paul and Storm are also independent musicians who tour around the country and play great (and hilarious) shows.

All in all, I ask you to join me in my mission to protect the sanctity of art in my boycott of the bland corporate policy of trying to sell us as many plastic discs as they can.