Music Download Sites – What Makes a Site Legal Or Illegal?

The internet has transformed the way music is consumed. While it’s easier and less costly for consumers now to access the latest music right from their homes, the breakthrough began with illegal downloading of music Letsmix. This unfortunate opening allowed others to follow suit. It is up to consumers to find out which websites and services they are allowed to use and which ones they are not. The first and most well-known illegal online music site is a good place to start.

This is the beginning of illegal music-downloading.

Napster was the first music file sharing tool. It was released to the public in 1999. Shawn Fanning invented the technology which allowed users free sharing of their music files with other users. This would make it possible for anyone to use a computer with simple software to obtain the music they need. This software quickly became known for violating copyright laws, as it did not have permission from the artists nor their labels to distribute these files.

Metallica, a heavy metal band discovered that their demo song “I disappear” was being circulated and was played on various radio stations long before the track was actually released. They were the first ones to file a suit against Napster regarding copyright infringement. Dr. Dre also filed suit against Napster requesting that all of Dre’s content be removed from the service. Napster was pursued in court by numerous record labels as well for these violations of copyright.

The story was shared by media and made Napster more popular.

Napster filed to declare bankruptcy on June 3rd 2002. The Internet was made possible by file sharing and online audio consumption. Many software and imitation sites sprung up following this incident. To this day, it is still possible to find illegal peer–to-peer filesharing solutions that allow illegal music downloads.

What does it mean to have a music download website legal?

In order to offer legal music downloads, there are some basic principles that a music site must adhere to. To put it simply, they must obtain permission to distribute any music files on the site from the owner of the copyright or legal representative. This can be the artist, the artists publishing house, or in most cases the artists record labels.

Napster copied material from the artist and made these files available to everyone. Neither the artist or record companies were paid. This is the biggest problem. Music is just like any other product. One person, or a team of people, spends their time creating a song or album. They then market their product. To obtain the product, you will need to pay a legal distributor so that all those involved in creating it get paid. If they aren’t and won’t make it freely available, you are stealing the product.

Stealing music is a violation of copyright laws. These laws were put in place to protect artists, labels, and ensure that they are in control over who can distribute the art.

I didn’t realize the site was illegal. It’s not my fault.

You are responsible for it regardless of how you view it. You are responsible to your actions on any music site or service. A small loophole exists in file sharing software or sites that allows users to use it legally. For example, I could create an eBook about the best music download websites and distribute it free of charge to anyone who wishes to read it. It’s legal for anyone to download it. I don’t seek compensation. In this instance, the user is not violating any laws.

Users who download copyrighted files from labels or artists that want to be compensated for their work can end up in trouble. It is their responsibility to do their research before downloading any music files.

How do you know if music download sites are legal or illegal.

To legally distribute music files, any music download site must sign a distribution deal with the artist’s record label. For music from the top 40 artists, you will find most of them signed to major labels such as EMI, Sony Music Entertainment or Universal Music Group. For music sites to legally distribute the music, they would need to sign a distribution contract with these companies.