SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

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Len911
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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by Len911 » Mon May 18, 2015 5:48 am

I guess I'm behind the times, there are programs that download mp3 from soundcloud, youtube music to itunes, and all sorts of stuff.

What a mess, it'll take a long time to get all that sorted out.

I was aware of youtube issues, but itunes?

It looks like it isn't only third world companies that facilitate and profit from piracy. :evil:
https://soundcloud.com/huck-sawyer-finn
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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by kclements » Mon May 18, 2015 5:55 am

Len911 wrote:I guess I'm behind the times, there are programs that download mp3 from soundcloud, youtube music to itunes, and all sorts of stuff.

What a mess, it'll take a long time to get all that sorted out.

I was aware of youtube issues, but itunes?

It looks like it isn't only third world companies that facilitate and profit from piracy. :evil:
Yes, I think that is the issue here. The are programs that can scrub the website for audio files, download or capture those files and then offer them for download for free, or for a fee. And of course, you can do this manually as well. I have heard of some people doing this and treating the downloaded songs as their own and putting them for sale.

I don't know how rampant it is or if it is something to get all worried about. But it is happening. I have thus far taken the stance that I don't put everything up on my SC page, and if someone steals it and sells it, at least at this point, it isn't worth my time to worry about. But I am starting to rethink that. I may start watermarking my tracks on SC.

But you can't do this for Taxi, cause that's what they send on to the listing party. So what's to stop these sites from scrubbing Taxi for audio? Again, I don't know that this is something that can be controlled completely, and I'm not sure how much sleep to loose over it.

But it is something to be aware of and on the look out for.

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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by belindacoomes » Mon May 18, 2015 7:14 am

After reading this post I became suspicious of a track of mine on soundcloud. It was being played at least once a day. As much as I'd love to believe that it was someone who had falling in love with the track and just HAD to listen to it all the time, for the level of attention my account receives, this was (sadly) unusual.

I googled the name and it came up on the website 'mp3stafa.mobi' ( I dont recommend going to this site, it's got pop ups and the general dodgy-ness feel).

This web site allows you to play the song and DOWNLOAD it. I did not make it available for download on my soundcloud profile.
I renamed the song which seemed to remove it from the web page. However, when I searched for the new name of the song, this web page made it available too.
I made the track private and re-named again, but it still found it.

Hmm, it's good to know about it now. I was ignorant about this sort of stuff just this morning.....

Thanks for letting me know.

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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by sabalsounds » Mon May 18, 2015 7:25 am

kclements wrote:
I don't know how rampant it is or if it is something to get all worried about. But it is happening. I have thus far taken the stance that I don't put everything up on my SC page, and if someone steals it and sells it, at least at this point, it isn't worth my time to worry about. But I am starting to rethink that. I may start watermarking my tracks on SC.

But you can't do this for Taxi, cause that's what they send on to the listing party. So what's to stop these sites from scrubbing Taxi for audio? Again, I don't know that this is something that can be controlled completely, and I'm not sure how much sleep to loose over it.

But it is something to be aware of and on the look out for.

kc
Hi Kayle - (enjoyed your podcast wit Kyle Z btw) I've just started getting interest from libraries and it's kind of concerning because my SC link is where I've directed them to sample my cues. From a business perspective, I suppose, I should continue to get up to speed on Wordpress and direct listeners to my own site and drop Soundcloud. Not that doing so would prevent piracy. I guess a watermark could either A) be annoying to a listener or B) make you seem more professional/desirable if your music is good enough to warrant being pirated (?)

BTW...have any of you used Mixcloud (owned by Soundcloud)? It's intended for higher quality files and (I think) requires an 8MB minimum to post. Other users have told me they can hear a difference in sound quality when streaming music there.
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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by VanderBoegh » Mon May 18, 2015 8:46 am

I suppose anything posted on the internet could be scrubbed, and thus stolen, by a piracy site. I think the reason they're targeting SoundCloud and YouTube and others like that is because of the sheer volume of material that is posted there ever single minute. It's like fishing at a lake that is constantly stocked, and for every fish you pull out, another 10 replace it. It's a piracy oasis.

I'm thinking that it just isn't worth the time or effort of these companies to go scrubbing every single website where there may be music. But unfortunately, it's really the only way that I've got to showcase my portfolio on my own personal website.

I probably only have about 15% of my tunes posted on SoundCloud, and may for the moment just leave it all there. But going forward, I will be very selective with what I post.

But then, the bigger question goes unsolved. How do you showcase your writing & composition talents without directing people to a place they can actually listen to it? I suppose watermarking is a good option, but as a non-pirate, I find them to be totally annoying. Nonetheless, it might be the best way to go.

Oh, I guess there's an even bigger question than that:

Are all of these websites just variations on the same thing, owned by the same shady company? I remember reading (on an ASCAP daily email, of all places) a story about the porn industry and how one single company seems to own everything related to the online industry, from the websites, to the production companies, to the performer's contracts, to the ads, etc, and just makes it look like hundreds of companies all in competition with each other. Crazy. Maybe sites like LyricsMp3Skull and FreeMp3Whale and stuff are in the same boat.

Am I worried about this? Yeah. But not with my stuff. Just like with big music libraries, a few tracks are easy to get lost in the bigger whole. And when these piracy sites are pilfering 1,000's of songs each day (maybe each hour), I'm not worried about my rustic country cues, or my tension cues, or my urban comedy, getting stolen and costing me tons of money. But I am concerned about the trend of piracy and the implications on how I promote myself as a composer from here on out. Looks like the old classic text "list of credits" might have to be my biggest selling point going forward.

~~Matt

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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by davekershaw » Mon May 18, 2015 10:55 am

Well, I'm on there too! :)
Thing is, the first item is "Interview with World War II veteran, Dave Kershaw". Can't remember doing one!! :D
Then there's loads of other links that have just been grabbed from various places. Real messy.

BUT, it's got "Lying Low In Mexico" with your trumpets Matt, and it's got a link to buy it on CD Baby, so all's well..... :) 8-)
Last edited by davekershaw on Mon May 18, 2015 12:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by kclements » Mon May 18, 2015 11:09 am

Here is how I look at it. Is there stealing? yes. Could you watermark it? Sure.

But I have a deal with a great publisher that contacted me out of the blue, after hearing my stuff on SC. So, while I won't put everything up there, I will continue to take older stuff down and put newer stuff up. It is the cost of doing business. And if I loose a couple pennies here or there because of these kinds of sites, I'm ok with that for now.

I highly doubt that anyone in the professional world is going to go to these sites and get music for tv placements. It's too risky. And I don't know what is going on with the Red Bull topic in another thread. Maybe it;s a misunderstanding, maybe it is out right theft - I don't know. But I think if it turns out to be theft. who ever is responsible won't keep their job long.

If a cue of mine which is represented by a publisher gets used in a recognizable placement, they publisher will also be looking to take action. As they won't get paid either.

It is very low on my things to worry about list.

cheers
kc
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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by kclements » Mon May 18, 2015 11:11 am

sabalsounds wrote:
Hi Kayle - (enjoyed your podcast wit Kyle Z btw) I've just started getting interest from libraries and it's kind of concerning because my SC link is where I've directed them to sample my cues. From a business perspective, I suppose, I should continue to get up to speed on Wordpress and direct listeners to my own site and drop Soundcloud. Not that doing so would prevent piracy. I guess a watermark could either A) be annoying to a listener or B) make you seem more professional/desirable if your music is good enough to warrant being pirated (?)

BTW...have any of you used Mixcloud (owned by Soundcloud)? It's intended for higher quality files and (I think) requires an 8MB minimum to post. Other users have told me they can hear a difference in sound quality when streaming music there.

Thanks Steven!

I have not heard of or tried Mixcloud. I don't use SC as a final format or depository for my cues. I use it simply as a place to showcase what I am doing to possible future clients. If they want a high-res file, they can contact me directly.

Cheers
kc
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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by kclements » Mon May 18, 2015 11:29 am

Also, I just heard James Taylor's latest single released via Soundcloud.

If it is good enough for JT, it's definitely good enough for me! ;)

kc
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Re: SoundCloud pirates? Is nothing safe?

Post by sabalsounds » Mon May 18, 2015 11:45 am

kclements wrote:Also, I just heard James Taylor's latest single released via Soundcloud.

If it is good enough for JT, it's definitely good enough for me! ;)

kc
Off topic alert! :)

I cut my teeth learning James Taylor songs on the guitar so needless to say I'm a huge fan. But it's kind of comical to me that he's released a phenomenal catalog of "B side" music over his lifetime and, yet, at his concerts if he doesn't play "Fire & Rain" or "Carolina On My Mind" for the 26,000th time he'd probably get booed.
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