Sen. Orrin Hatch has chimed in on the debate over peer-to-peer downloading of music:
The fundamental issue with respect to peer-to-peer downloading, not addressing the legal arguments for or against the enforcement of copyright laws, is what is the motivation behind the success of such services. The fact remains that these services are popular because the music industry has priced themselves out of the market. People, mostly young teens and students, can not afford or are not willing to pay up to $24.00 for a CD in which they want one or two songs. Some Music CD's cost as much as movie DVD 's and some would argue the product is of much more substance. The Music industry has not kept pace with modern technology and demand of their target audiences. They maintain an outmoded means of marketing trying to force the consumer to conform to the product rather than modeling the product after the demands of the customer. If most industries were to take such an approach, the consumer has an alternative in products. Not so when it come to music. A handful of large Corporations control the marketing and price of all the music sold in the world and all utilize the same methods of marketing and sales. The consumers who want an alternative to the product offered, has no other alternative than to take part in alleged copyright violations. The continued existence of online sites to download music will continue until the music industry prices their product to a level the market will accept and conforms to the modern demands of the consumer.
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