Music industry continues short-sightedness

The music industry in Europe has been accused of being short-sighted, after forcing broadband provider Tiscali to reduce access to online music on its file-sharing network.

At present, Tiscali has an agreement with the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) to allow users to listen to tracks online but not download them.

The IFPI objected because Tiscali added a “search by artist” feature, that the IFPI decided breached the licence it had with Tiscali.

However, it should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the backward attitude of the music industry, which at present appears to view the digital age mostly as a piracy threat, rather than a marketing opportunity.