3. The Sam Moore dispute with AFTRA is bad news, no question about it. But it's ancient history. Today, artists are the most well-represented people on earth. They have managers and lawyers that specialize in extracting money from record companies for their clients, and they're very good at it. We just got the results of a study of contracts, and the amount of money being paid to these artists is impressive. New contracts in 2000 averaged $450,000 in advances and commitments for the first album; if the artist was successful and renegotiated his contract, the average soared to $3.7 million. You can imagine the sums being paid to the superstars. By the way, the companies have been helping out the older artists with major contributions to the Rhythm & Blues Foundation and other groups.

Question #5:
I can walk into any bookstore and peruse a book for hours before buying. I can also return that book for store credit without the bookstore accusing me of photocopying the book at home.

I generally cannot peruse the contents of a CD, and I can not return it once it has been opened. Thus, I'm treated as a criminal, and forced to buy a $16.99 raffle ticket.

Why are you hiding the contents of a CD from the consumer? Are you afraid that generally once they hear the full album (rather than just the radio hit that has been drilled into their heads) that the consumer will not buy it?

Please elaborate on why, as a consumer, I am not entitled to know what I am buying.
Thanks
Jon

Cary Sherman:
I guess you haven't been to a record store lately. A lot of them feature this really cool "wand" that you can swipe across the barcode of any CD in the bins - and you will immediately hear samples from the various tracks on that CD! It's really great.

Most record stores also feature "listening posts" where you can sample the music from CDs, but those are limited to the specific CDs being offered that month.

The Internet presents an unbelievable opportunity for sampling. Go to online music stores (like Tower, or Amazon, or loads of others) and click on the album you're interested in and you'll be able to hear samples all day long.

In short, everyone is better off when you, the consumer, get to know what you're buying before you buy it. You're a happier music fan, and we don't have an unhappy customer who feels ripped off.