The P2P file sharing community is vast. This networking community has basically accessed a way of filesharing music between individuals without generally involving record companies, artists or bands. So, just what is P2P?
P2P stands for peer-to-peer and is used to describe the way that music is accessed by a user. In very general terms members of these communities join a P2P site and may be asked to download software programs to use the service. This software will basically point at a place on their own computer where they store their music files.
So, when other people log into the site they can see which music is available from other users and ask to download it free. This bypasses all rights issues as the user is simply downloading from another person. So, they can use their downloads as they want with no restrictions. They can burn to CD, transfer to portable audio digital device such as MP3 players and share the music with their friends if they like.
Is this the best way to download music? Well, it’s certainly free but it’s not exactly legal and the record industry is not at all impressed. If you access your music in this way then the music you download won’t cost you anything but the artists involved also won’t be paid any money. So, there are also questions of ethics here as well.
In recent years the record industry has lobbied to have many heavy P2P users sued for their use of these kinds of networks. This is kind of a grey area but users need to be aware that legal action can be taken against them if they choose to source their music by this route rather than by legal means.
Other problems can include music quality – if you’re downloading somebody else’s music then you have no control over what you will get. And, there are privacy issues here. A P2P site will allow other users access to a part or parts of your computer which can cause problems.
If you’re determined to go the P2P route then the best advice is to go for one of the bigger sites that will look to protect your interests. Read some online reviews and see what other users think before you sign up to any site.
Also see music download services .