REMI X
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Average Simultaneous P2P Users—USA 7,500,000 7,000,000 6,500,000 6,000,000 5,500,000 5,000,000 4,500,000 4,000,000 3,500,000 3,000,000 2,500,000 2,000,000 1,500,000 1,000,000 500,000
August 2004
June 2004
April 2004
February 2004
December 2003
October 2003
August 2003
June 2003
April 2003
February 2003
December 2002
October 2002
August 2002
0
No doubt someone would have lost something in this alternative scenario. Lawyers for sure. Maybe record companies too. Lawyers would have missed out on the extraordinary boon to our industry caused by the litigation surrounding illegal file sharing. Record companies might have lost out because they would have given up an exclusive right in favor of compulsory compensation. But even this loss is uncertain. It is more than plausible that a compulsory system would have secured for the recording industry more money than in fact it got.
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