Radiohead's Ed O'Brien on music filesharing

[alphafour]

"we don't need to make any more money" spot on they make plenty of money he doesn't look strapped for cash does he.

[Picklesnipe]

I love Radiohead, but throttling bandwidth is a dick move, no thank you Ed.

[Banzay27]

Exactly, copyrights are justified to exist as a means of protecting young artists and up-and-coming makers of whatever product from fat cats that would swipe their ideas or copy them overtly - as it still happens, more or less discreetly.

Now the subject only comes up to point out that the maker of whatever is entitled to payment for whatever ounce of enjoyment or usefulness anyone may take from it. This is a way of more and more getting offtrack as technology progresses.

[FlexxArtist]

Putting my anger towards Radiohead's fans aside, I must say its inspiring to see someone like Ed O'Brien taking young artists such as me into account when he talks about file sharing. I have been producing mainly Dubstep for roughly 4 months now, I like the dark underground side to it and my intentions are to bring that side of Dubstep back as America has now taken it and smothered it with commercialism. I also let the fans place their price, was surprised, some great people out there.

[StudioScarecrow]

@geriland2 Good job, you've taken obnoxious snobbery to a whole new level. Go fuck yourself, you give sane Radiohead fans a bad name. People can like whatever the hell they want to like, it doesn't determine whether they're a "real" fan or not. People like you make me ashamed to be a Radiohead fan.

[BehindthePlay]

great that he just admits he's a fat cat.. And just keeps going . Just proves he's tring to be honest. people may have poblems with the whole thing and what's happening but he right then and there was being honest and was trying to say and do what he can do... that's pretty cool

[muzapstar]

You fucking morons, BANDWITH THROTTLING? that is just going to lead to CBS and such having all the control and anyone who disagrees being thrown under the bus. ITS A POWER PLAY FOR THE TV COMPANIES.

[Conchobhar]

A better approach would be helping to make it easier for young/new artists to sell their music online. Half the time I pirate because someone requires a credit card. Fuck that.

[Swachitsky]

you know what's special about this band ? they don't do music so they can have a shitload of money in the bank and lots of recognition, they do it for pleasure and for passion of music. Paying or not paying for their music is not elementar for them.

[MrLukeroberts91]

Even better was Radiohead's latest idea - offering their King of Limbs newspaper edition vinyl for a very reasonable price, you physically get something for your money.

[yuntras]

: being a big artist with long trayectory,file sharing = not bad : being a new artist with no trayectory,file sharing = dead

[Hamring]

@yuntras Maybe.. but I don't think it's as easy as that. The record industry has been pushing this argument aggressively for a while now, but i highly doubt they've taken into account the free advertising that file sharing might give. Since the music reaches a lot more people, the profits might actually increase. In most cases, fans will pay for the music of their favorite artists regardless of the existence of free files on the internet.

[judyisarunt90]

Mmmhmm..he is so fine

[morvelification]

i suppose it's not OK Computer :(

[MrLiamHenderson]

Internet killed the video star.

[terriblelove1]

The people who keep talking about House are idiots. How about, Ed O'Brien knows a lot about computers? Real original guys.

[Nirvaaanaa]

@terriblelove1 it's because he looks like him my friend ;)

[yoohoo4blood]

intelligent

[strokeofzest]

Ed: "...Fat Cats like myself".... AWESOME!!!

[arex82]

id seriously like to know the name of this alleged Swiss ISP provider.

My inbox will be thankfully awaiting such information from a random generous user :)

[TheCagedTiger]

I'm glad that the ACTA fell through. All the bandwidth I want.

[ztikmaen]

Ed is so good at talking

[jwbrown1968]

I didn't know House was a member of Radiohead...

[95railflip]

Why does Hugh Grant know so much about computers?

[bishopdante]

The internet service providers don't share their money.

What bloody royalties? Where are the royalties. Seriously. What a pisstake.

Come on. ISPs sell us out. Damn.

[pleckles]

this man should not be speaking on behalf of radiohead.

[JamesGrady2]

ed you fatcat :)

[matcotech]

"But sir we found the suspect... I'm going back in dammit!"

[SpaceDrummer16]

what ever happened to making music for the sake of making music? money should never be a factor when it comes to laying down a nice tasty jam

[QuadfishTym]

@SpaceDrummer16 You're a fool if you think any person with a good business opportunity is going to turn down the cash.

[engeladam409]

@SpaceDrummer16

They're clearly into the music...

But it's understandable why you would be pissed off when you work your ass off producing an album, and your so called "fans" just download the whole thing for free (stealing). If you really respect a band, stopping being a tight ass and just by the fucking album.

[AmuseMe543]

What an intelligent man.

[gmbrez]

There are pros and cons to filesharing but it costs money to be an artist and in 99% of cases you get fucking nowhere unless you sell out or compromise in some way. To see Radiohead release an album for free (donations welcome) is a bit two faced when confronted with their contradictory stance on filesharing. Im a huge radiohead fan but i believe that only bands like radiohead or U2 could release an album for free. Lily Allen represents the lowest common denominator.

[whogotdmosh]

the more popular the artist, the more they get paid for live shows.

[thedirtydeltas]

FUCK ILLY ALLEN she is pure talentless shit ....who cares what she has to say if shes a spokeswoman for music then we're all fucked anyways societies in more trouble than I thought.

[thedirtydeltas]

FUCK ILLY ALLEN she is pure talentless shit ....who cares what she has to say if shes a spokeswoman for music then we're all fucked anyways societies in my trouble than I thought.

[ri394]

that is true. in rainbows made shitloads of money, even though the people could've easily paid nothing.

[youttebayo]

I... honestly have no idea why people are getting mad. It appears that Ed is supporting filesharing, because it's how music manages to get distributed, yet disapproves of MASS SHARING, like huge chunks that affect sales (2:00) and suggests bandwidth throttling to compromise with record labels to reduce persistent filesharing. He also admits that filesharing DOES get artists' names out (1:30).

[AmazingPurpleCat]

I love his voice

[Quetzacoatl89]

Ed's turning into House.

[ellisrose]

@Quetzacoatl89 No, Ed is so handsome.

[BrebThaMan]

Fuck Advertising

[losghost]

I wish I had enough money to be idealistic....

[b1r2a3d4l5e6y]

I downloaded inrainbows the night it came out, didn't pay for it. But I did buy the cd when it came out on new years and have now bought it on vinyl as well...

[pstrokeslibsarctic]

้he smarts than those governors and he knows about the problem not just random solve.

[steveshadforth]

File sharing has effected your music so much you can't write proper songs anymore. Twat.

[mrfanlogan]

@steveshadforth haha your gay little comment was marked because it had too many negative votes. no1 agrees with you.

[steveshadforth]

@mrfanlogan homophobic, nice.

[steveshadforth]

File sharing has effected your music so much you can't write proper songs anymore. Twat.

[dpthomas37]

i was gonna watch this video, but then an advertisement came on and so i went apeshit and set my house on fire.

and now the video is playing, and i think i should have been more patient. damn.

[H2Oooh]

I really believe that artists should not be payed this huge amount of money...Maybe they should go back to making their money the hard way (by selling tickets in concerts), and than maybe we will once again hear the sound of reality.

[theacemaverick]

uuuugh horrible interview wish I didn't watch it.... ''I'm a fat cat, throttle your broadband speed, Lilly Allen, Lilly Allen LILLY FKIN ALLEN !!!!''

[poeticpisces2007]

Radiohead is awesome! and Ed O'brien dosn't look anything like Steven Patrick Morrissey to me.

[TheEnviroFriend]

the RIAA sued a chronically ill teenager who's mom only makes $8 an hour for $8,000. for sharing 10 songs.....

[alankmkz]

17 Lily Allen fans didn't like this.

[johanna717]

Hot.

[antisadism]

People, this si Ed O Brien. Please post comments of praise and love to this great guitarist.

[mynameissqueegy]

@antisadism

hahaha. Ed, you would say that!

[itsachickenwiththing]

Too bad that most up and coming artists barely get any money for their first couple of albums, they mostly have to do tours and shows to make a living. This is of course if they stick to the standard record company scene.

Honestly, I think it would benefit music itself (maybe not the music industry) to create a system where all bands or musicians can have the distributive freedom that Radiohead used for the release of "In Rainbows".

[GLeNss]

Bandwidth throttling? Bitch I use to wait 30mins to download one mp3 using dialup do you think I give a fuck? This guy is a prick, the market is moving on find your own solution. To lily allen, LOL your shit go on tour you whore. Mandelson is a dick too.

[LfunkeyA]

@GLeNss

this guy is a prick? no, you are a dick.

[BanandroidBanandroid]

@GLeNss You just made yourself sound like an asshole, well done.

[Znienacka1066]

Dr. House?

[futurfry]

@Znienacka1066 ahaha yes finally someone else!!

[bubblepopelictric]

lilly allen is crappy

[6Jill9]

Although I disagree with mass filesharing and people not paying for music at all, The problem is, he said himself that people heard of Lily Allen through myspace and filesharing, therefore helping her as an upcoming 'artist' and you can't have it both ways that now she wants all the money, she wants to stop people doing it. I would also like to point out that she slagged off Radiohead for doing that free download thing, So she clearly has no idea what she is talking about.

[MrSim36]

well said. one thing not mentioned is artists are back to the performance (live). this may sit outside of any record deals which deal with distribution rights. Great to see all these bands touring like never before, reaping the dor and merch. . if you can play you can still make an fantastic earn as a musician. The (pirated/free) distribution promotes the live gig, which cannot be pirated. tour, play and work like you never have before.

[ezekieloak]

Ed, mate. We're all so glad you are singing more. You are an amazing artist and you should write more stuff. But you seem to be on the wrong side of the revolution that is the democratization of music, my friend. Remember that the English once had to pay the Pope before they could shag a lass.

JS Bach's trust in everyman will prevail.

[Thundermonk99]

@ezekieloak that seems to be a silly analogy. What makes you think that you have the right to other people's music?

[ezekieloak]

@Thundermonk99 You just answered your own question. Nobody has a right to control my experience with music, nor anyone else's. The record companies are a really, really recent mass distribution system. And they have a right to demand that I pay for the plastic they produce or the data bits that they have purchased. I also have the right to say, "Wow that music sucks ass and is just shoved down my throat everyday on the radio. How many excellent songs am I not hearing because of big business?"

[Thundermonk99]

@ezekieloak you in no way answered my question. Your original statement used the phrase "democratization of music". Could you clarify what you meant? It seems to imply "free music to people" (not paying for the music). Assuming this is what you meant, your reply seems silly. The music produced by artists is their music, their private property. You don't have the right to experience that music. The musicians hold the right to their music.

[ezekieloak]

@Thundermonk99 I am just sitting here listening to Brahms' 1st symphony right now, without paying any monetary compensation to Otto Klemperer, the Philharmonia Orchestra (1958) nor the folks who bought the youtube servers. But Brahms was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Music from Cambridge without paying them for it, dirty scumbag that he was.

I like the Grateful Dead but I concede that theft is abhorrent. The rest of our miscommunication might lie in different understandings of what music is.

[RussellThePumpkin]

"Most people are good about that kind of stuff." You're wrong Ed. Radiohead fans are good about that kind of stuff. ;)

[DanTube2008]

I've read a lot of comments on here and the general consensus is:

"The more you download, the more you buy"

Is there any evidence, or is there any research, to support that claim? Because I would be astonished if the vast majority of heavy file-sharers have any intention of paying for music again.

I don't want to get into an ill-informed argument. I just want to know if there are any notable authorities on the issue and independant of any bias.

[oysterinbread]

i love radiohead's music

but they are trying way too hard to convince people of their political views

or "express their personal beliefs"

that is the rudest thing after preaching religions

[oysterinbread]

people download your music so they can get to know them

and that's why people buy your albums

we cant just listen to a few songs/singles and then buy the whole album

you try on a shirt before buying it right

albums are not cheap

we just want to make sure we like it before buying it

[oysterinbread]

fran healy believes in illegal downloading

why can't people be smart like him

[Mygalej]

If it wasn't of internet, youtube, limewire, whatever, I wouldn't've gone to the shows I've been to and wouldn't buy much records

[honoriuszbalzak]

fatcats like myself

[laika288]

Well reasoned indeed and he's such a handsome git

[TolosaDa]

Dr. House!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!1

[kyle16813]

This is an outlook on file sharing with reasoning. Nicely done Ed!

Kinda looks like the rich mans Hugh Laurie

[noisez13000]

hes being nice n polite, because of these young artists who deserve a proper album sales untouched by file sharing.  THE truth is thaqt it cant be stopped even if the did make aressts it will never go away. In stead of trying to fight they need to learn to work with it, and radiohead's tip jar was a brilliant idea

[sozifilied]

Lilly Allen should be throttled.

Properly.

[rocknroll9queen]

@sozifilied @simplelife88393 just cause you don't like her.. wow..

[MrLukeroberts91]

@sozifilied Lilly Allen is actually quite musically talented, clearly more so than yourself - How many praises have you got from Radiohead members?

[StudioScarecrow]

@sozifilied hahahaha I love how every single radiohead video has at least one comment bashing a different artist

"fuck coldplay!"

"fuck muse!"

"fuck lilly allen!"

"fuck (insert band other than radiohead here)"

seriously, I love radiohead but i hate radiohead fans, they're such snobs

[aqimwolstenholme]

@StudioScarecrow true that. if you were a true fan of music, you'd respect other people's taste(except for the new pop stuff though *insert trollface*). i'm offended with the 'fuck muse' comment since i'm also a muse fan. both muse and radiohead are equally amazing for me and shall stay that way for the rest of my existence

[StudioScarecrow]

@aqimwolstenholme Agreed.

[NathaBill]

NO entiendo. Porquè meter a Lilly Allen?????????

e igual no se trata de desprestigiar otras bandas cuando hay un estilo original con el de Radiohead, no se necesitan comparaciones.

[FlexxArtist]

@StudioScarecrow Wow I'm not the only one who thinks that. Because the fans are happy to step out of the 'norm' and listen to something creative and different, they feel as if they are superior and better than everyone else who just follows the crowd. Of course there are some genuine fans out there, but majority on Youtube anyway are complete argumentative cunts. I am a huge fan of a whole range of music, some music in the charts, most of it out the charts. I don't care its just fucking music.

[papu2000au]

epic FAIL.

throttling my bandwidth is not an option for compromise.

[redrumPole]

dear musicians, do something with rapidshare and other sites like rs, they steal from you, but leave the kids who use p2p with their friends to find new music alone! we all know how it is like, the more you download, the more you buy, it really works like that. and give us opportunities not to use rapidshare, we need more places where we can buy mp3s - i bought Bjork's CD the other day and then found out that the digital version on Nokia Music Strore is more expensive than a CD!

[JimmyBronx]

Ed, you've got to realize that people want new digital formats that they can carry around with them containing their favourite music. The way that iTunes (for instance) is currently distributing digital formats is inconvenient for the average user. Music has always been about sharing and turning other people onto new music, it's the way it grows. If musicians can connect with these fans, they can turn them into benefactors using different means. You just need to discover what those are.

[redrumPole]

i keep on repeating myself on that topic, but id' never buy any record or go to any show without file-sharing... so many of us wouldn't.

[reCupcake]

you rather them completely cut off your internet or throttle your bandwidth on sharing files...?

Radiohead, i think, actually supports filesharing. They don't release DVDs - they know theres entire concerts up on youtube at your convenience. Paying was optional for In Rainbows, and These are my Twisted Words was mysteriously leaked before officially released (free).

I think Ed is just trying to support filesharing, but at the same time try to make up a compromise so the boss people are happy.

[NoRogeR]

Bandwidth throttling? Are you god damn kidding me?

[meggsy]

Lily Allen who, on her own website, illegally uploaded and hosted music mixes containing songs she had no rights to?

And further plagiarised when she word-for-word presented someone else's opinion as her own on her blog, without citation? And then cried and closer her blog when she was found out?

Cry harder.

[sanewave]

wow, did thome yorke know this douche is saying this. anyone who knows anything about the internet knows what he just says is retarded

[tusspot666]

Ha ha ha, oh wow.

[Phranky]

I'm a bit confused as to whether this is a joke or not.

[OlympiaOverdrive]

LILY ALLEN.

die bitch.

[ripelivejam]

that camera must be on a 10 foot tall tripod lol

[reCupcake]

lmao.

[kevin2671]

umm throttling internet speeds is the worst way the gov could crackdown on file sharing since it affects all legitimate internet use as well... would stop people from playing online games, watching youtube videos without buffering, downloading documents and programs... and if you want to sell mp3 downloads it would make that crawl along as well

[sdphost]

Bullshit, this is about him wanting more money.

[dodoshlodo]

thats the dumbest arguement ive ever heard... u fail radiohead

[DrMattDestruction]

u fail,* radiohead

[nealio666]

"young artists get known by file sharing"

"Its about the young artists"

so you want to keep the young artists down then?

[Doki66]

I thought he was serious until he said Lily Allen. Hahaha, nice one Ed.

[unbiasedperson]

he goes on a long rant about sending people underground but then suggets something that will make people go underground?

Moron.

[theOvin2]

Music is supposed to be an art, not a business.

They digital age we live in can completely eliminate the majority of overhead involved with music production and distribution, yet somehow CD prices are $20 a pop. It's an insane markup to which the actual "artist" sees very little.

Pirates simply reject being controlled by the music cartel.

[dodoshlodo]

well said

[zer0pixel]

Wanker.

[simplelife88393]

Ed, I love you. I watched you shake that tambourine in Manchester for 4 fucking hours.

But please, never reffer to lilly allen as an 'artist' again.

[harpUnstrung68000]

@simplelife88393 Oh, I get it. You think pop music is bad just because even though it's well-written music, it's still not as "artistic" as you would like it to be. Fuck off.

[simplelife88393]

@harpUnstrung68000

No, Lilly Allens shit.

Trow yourself infront of a train.

[MCshlthead]

@simplelife88393 hey ed knows she's shit. but hes a pure gent

[TehWinnerz]

@simplelife88393 one of the greatest comments I've read on youtube. Beautiful!

[pigfister]

& also boycott these scum!

MPAA, MPA, FACT, AFACT, Ect:

# Sony Pictures

# Warner Bros. (Time Warner)

# Universal Studios (NBC Universal)

# The Walt Disney Company

# 20th Century Fox (News Corporation)

# Paramount Pictures Viacom—(DreamWorks owners since February 2006)

[pigfister]

i dont think that UK isp's could throttle our bandwidth any more than they already do to save their overheads!

Boycott the media gatekeeper skum is the only way to change their failed business model.

RIAA, CRIA, SOUNDEXCHANGE, BPI, PRS, IFPI, ASCAP, Ect:

# Sony BMG Music Entertainment

# Warner Music Group

# Universal Music Group

# EMI

[godverdegodverdomme]

And let radiostations play more then 1 specific song

from each band, that way we'll know what's actually

on the albums to begin with.

You don't pay a company 50 euro's for a joypad

that you never saw, except for the start button.

[godverdegodverdomme]

If artists/record companies would put a decent price on their albums then illegal uploading wouldn't be necessary. There is simply too much choice in good music for most of us to be able to afford, and too much choice in bad music for us to waste 20 euro's (or more) on, each and every damn album. Music should never become elitized, that's like charging money for the act of breathing. Let the people decide what their music is worth, like Radiohead did with 'In Rainbows'.

[YouKnowWhereThisEnds]

Ed O'Brien.

A true gentleman.

[Mistwaters]

The REAL victims of illegal file sharing are musicians whose strongsuit is the recorded album.

It's easy to say "screw 'em, they'll get rich anyway" to musicians who are live concert touring musicians, but a lot of IDM musicians, electronica, etc, create their masterpieces in the studio.

If a band spends 100,000 dollars painstakingly crafting a masterpiece studio album, and gets no money or it because everyone steals their creation, they'll have to get a real job, and can't do it again.

[Kenzofeis]

Throttling bandwith is a stupid idea (greed and stupidity most often correlates) because it will affect everyone and anyone, and these mongrels have no right to do that.

People playing WoW get 1hr a week of playtime, or 3200ms lag - because music industry leeches says so?

[Kenzofeis]

In Norway a music CD may cost like, eq. of USD26 in a shop, if you buy only 10 of these you have spent USD260, and a collection a hundred represents 2600 US dollars give or take..

The numbers speaks for themselves.

Around half of it goes to the shop, almost half goes to the company, the manufacturing costs 1,5USD, how much do the artist get?

At least some artists would be smarter to avoid the sharks and sell their music online as HQ-mp3 at fair price, maybe throw in some signed item..

[Patriknark]

Yeah, a lot of the middle men in the business are pricing themselves out of the market.

And that's a GOOD thing. The market will solve this, artists might suffer a while because of the behemoths clogging up the system and making it harder to make entry on your own. In the end it will be a lot flatter system, where artists hire engineers, distributors etc directly, and there will be less room for ultra-mega-giga-labels who leech out money without creating much music

[LucasSumtimes]

Technology will evolve to counter any moves the government or big business make - the 3 Davids; Geffen, Rockefeller and Milliband cooked this idea up in California to protect the interests of the corporations, it won't take long before it collapses in disarray - someone once said "you can't hold back an idea whose time has come."

[YouToonie]

prob is there is no platform now alot of radiohead albums was floating around the net way back in 1995 -96 aswell as on radio ,tv , those that was into it supported it and brought the albums although now its alot more expensive and mp3s is no diffrent to recording from the L R channels from a music station which has been done before the internet days my guess is bring back reel2reel or something new :)

[mattpic138]

I think prison hefty fines should be given out to people who illegally download music! it is stealing and it costs th music industry tons of money, alot of smaller bands simply cant afford to play anymore because of it!

[YouToonie]

no if you leave your things in the street and come back to find its gone you are liable for that, you dont leave your car in the road with with the doors wide open and keys in the ignition do you? if someone plays a tune over the radio illegally should all the listeners be punished? those who upload are the ones stealing and braking copyright terms

[LucasSumtimes]

Prison for file sharing? Jesus f***ing Christ, how about the death penalty for pot smokers?

[samuelbell1990]

No way, No limit. You guys are rich stop crying.

[crimsoncoin]

Never fight your audience, pirates are fairly Bad, Band width throttling used to limit bandwidth speeds across chosen applications, free the music, create more hubs attract more audience..