i have a hard time with this issue.
first of all, i remember vividly recording tapes in the 80's. we recorded tapes all the time, off the radio, tape to tape, mix tapes, etc. i don't remember anyone getting sued. i don't recall any of the dual tape deck manufactures being sued for producing equipment to copy music.
second, i remember cd's costing upwards of $18.00 to $22.00 when i was in high school. that is insanely high, especially for the quality of a 'made in china' cd. it's poor quality material, poor quality music, and poor quality packaging/marketing. going to the movies at the theater is somewhere around $10 now, not to mention the insane prices on food and drink as well...
now, if i remember capitalism correctly, it's the buyers who set the price, correct? if someone prices their product too high, no one buys it, the purchaser has affectively "set" the price, and the seller is left with empty pockets.
so, the consumer is saying "wow, this crap cost too much and i'm getting little value out of it for my money. i believe i'm going to get my products elsewhere, for cheaper." they then go online and find it for a lower price, or free. doesn't seem like business rocket science to me. i'm sure more people would purchase their movies and music if they were made to last out of quality materials and you were paying the artists, not a bunch of uncreative CEOs and marketing departments.
i'm personally waiting for the industry to produce a better quality product for cheaper. or even a better quality product NOT cheaper. cd's are NOT worth what the recording industry are asking for them. going to the movies is NOT worth what they're charging. cable and satellite tv are NOT worth what they're charging for them monthly, especially with the actual cost of air time of shows vs. air time of commericals. not to mention no one has a "mix and match" station package yet. come on...i gotta pay for crap i don't ever want to watch just to get the three channels i want to see? that's ridiculous with todays technology.
the greedy, greedy recording industry suits put themselves in this position. i have no sympathy for millionaires missing out on another chunk of un-earned money. swindlers getting swindled doesn't pull my heart strings, and these outrageously high settlements just prove what kind of out of touch scum they are, and certainly doesn't help their
PR or cause.