Music Rights of the Future

Everyone knows the controversy of copyright infringement involving music, especially in the age of downloading and sharing via the internet. With the closing down of peer-to-peer sharing sites like Limewire, illegal downloading has become of way of the past. Now people are going towards legal alternatives like Pandora radio. But, ever since Spotify, people have been able to listen to whatever they like whenever they like, for free! Of course the occasional advertisement keeps it legal, but Spotify is revolutionary as it is basically an unlocked iTunes. How are they competing and how are the artists feeling about this? The main fear is that this will take money out of the pockets of independent musicians, but mainstream artists also are complaining. Taylor Swift and Coldplay have both forbid Spotify access to their new albums and think the website is destroying the value of music. But, as Spotify becomes more used and more socially driven (an update is coming that is transforming Spotify into a Twitter-like fashion of followings and followers), artists are also waving the white flag and allowing access. Metallica, who were famous for their Napster hatred, have given rights to spotify along with ACDC and other bands who have typically kept away from internet access. What is the correct way to deal with music copyright law? Especially in the age of internet-everything? Is it fair to give access online in a perfectly legal way or is it taking away from the sanctity of music, making it readily available for anyone with an internet connection? As we see the transformation of music and other multimedia rights continue through the 21st century, these legal and moral questions arise. Before, we knew Limewire and Piratebay were bad, and we stayed away (hopefully). But now we are at a crossroads with music. And for the first time, we actually don't know for sure what the right things to do is.