AllOfMP3 shut down after years of fights
The music industry tonight welcomed reports that the Russian download site AllOfMP3.com has been shut down by the Kremlin after years of protests by artists and labels that it was selling illegal copies of their tracks. Once said to be the UK’s second most popular digital music site after Apple’s iTunes, AllOfMP3.com went offline after tensions between America and Russia over the latter’s efforts to combat piracy. The site had presented itself as a legitimate music store, claiming it paid record companies and artists. But the music industry disputed that and accused it of undercutting legitimate services such as iTunes and Napster 2.0 by not compensating artists and record companies.
John Kennedy, head of international music industry association IFPI, said AllOfMP3.com violated Russian and international copyright law “by ripping off artists, taking music that it had no right to reproduce and selling it worldwide”.IFPI’s latest piracy report listed Russia as one of 10 “priority countries”. The group has backed a legal campaign against AllOfMP3.com that included a criminal trial of one of the site’s former directors and high court proceedings in Germany and Britain. Still, it appears that an alternative site run by AllOfMP3.com’s owners has already sprung up. MP3Sparks.com claims on its website that it is legal under Russian law. Geoff Taylor, head of UK music industry lobby group BPI, said it would continue to take action against sites selling “stolen” music: “We appeal to UK music fans to stay away from these illegal Russian sites, which are unlicensed parasites that make no investment in music and do not pay royalties to the artists concerned.” Russia is still too wild for you, US boys…
Comments(28)
It’s been down for almost a week now, actually.
I don’t understand why IFPI is so upset they obviously follow RUSSIAN LAW just because russian law differs in the context of not giving them enough money…
I’m glad they made a clone of their site real quick.
It’s obvious they (IFPI) want to milk the cow (us consumers) for as long as they can beacause, wether they like it or not prices will drop.
Unfortunately allofmp3 was and is ahead of its time…
Actaully it just changed websites MP3Spark.com is by the same people, same usernames and passwords if you had an account wt allofmp3.com
prices now are a little higher thou, about 11-25 cents a song
11 cents is still amazing price if you compare it to iTunes’ 99 cents or more…
If it was legal it wouldnt have been shut down, or they still have their 3 sites hosted in spain. Which dosent have the same copyright laws as Russia.
The point is that allofmp3 dosent pay anything to anybody for the music they sell.
Basically they buy one of each cd released in most countries, then rip it and sell the tracks.
Ehee.. ofc those russian bastards dont pay anything to anyone. It’s classical Russian “business” scheme selling pirated material as it was totally legal and etc. If you get 11 US cents from track, then its a JOKE, if someone claims, he takes some of the money from that lousy 11 cents and pays it to original music authors
I’m all for sharing music and videos,but no one should make money off somebody else’s work.
I think record companies and distributors do more damage than allofmp3. The real criminals own the copyright and make the law. Fuck the big labels and distributors and any money-grabbing musicians that join them. Long live piracy. Fuck the corrupt system and all the profiteers.
Why don’t the music labels start there own site… then they cant complain when no-one pays for all that crap they put out instead they will see we are willing to pay for great music…
just my 11cents worth…
Hyper: ‘just my 11cents worth…’
You’d get a track for that.
Mp3Sparks.com
Welcome ^) This is the new name of allofmp3. ^) Check it. There is an database and acc’s direct from allofmp3 ) Enjoy )
PS Sorry for my Eng.) I just learn it, i’m from Russia )
I don’t care for the RIAA, but since the Russians sold this stuff for profit I’m not shocked by this action.
why would record labels do that when they are trying to sell CDs on their site you can buy CDs besides it would be pointless because they could only release tracks that they own unless they have an agreement with other companies and then that would defeat the purpose after that
You people do realize Russian government have not made ANY official announcement regarding AllOFMP3 being shutdown?
This is Western media going crazy on gossip!!!
@Finn
“Basically they buy one of each cd released in most countries, then rip it and sell the tracks.”
AllOfMP3 buys every album? haha what a joke – no they dont. If you look at some of the albums, they are regional or very hard to get or you pay high prices as an import. If you think AOM has a person in every country who goes to the record store every week and buys a new album and then rips/sends it to Russia – you are so wrong.
They probably get their stuff the same way we all do – scene releases. I mean at mp3sparks they even have a section marked “without covers” – have you ever bought a store CD without a cover? I didnt think so. Thats proof that they get scene releases and just relabel them.
Pirates music store buying original CDs.. good one Finn .. thanks for the laugh!
ALLOF is ABS LEGAL according Rus law. If it breaks USA law – f*ck off, ‘mericans
maybe time to switch to mp3nova?
@Mike, you might want to say F off to the WTO since that’s what bore this action. I’m not going to say the US wasn’t involved in this, but without the WTO influence there would have been much less of a problem. This is an example of Russia potentially starting to update/change their laws. The idea was that if Russia wants to join the WTO, they need to update their regulations to fit with WTO standards. The impression of US bullying aside, I can’t say I disagree with that element of WTO membership. Russia’s post communist economics is a bit rough around the edges and WTO membership would be the next stepping stone to growing into something more globally feasible. If AOM has to die in the process, big deal. Something else has already taken it’s place and everyone can move along.
Well, they have launched http://www.mp3sparks.com/ ( which i cant reach atm though, but i could earlier) which is basically the same.
I can understand why they got shut down… I am certainly not against sharing music etc.. I certainly have no problem downloading major corporate label music, they deserve to be screwed just like they screw over all their artists.
However people should always try to buy the music made by the smaller underground artists and labels if they really like it because contrary to popular belief none of them are rich, and it is becomming near impossible for them to survive in the current climate.
RESPECT THE UNDERGROUND – FUCK THE MAJORS!
the more people take this attitude the less financially viable it will be for those corporate suits to keep churning out shit.
Long live sharing, long live a free and uncontrolled internet!.
Don’t ya all think that there’s no pirated music/media on US territory, do ya? ))
90% of all illegal media comes from states. Yes, it’s distributed by Europe (including Russia) mostly, but after that big share of that piracy’s profit returns back to states… So, no complains guys.
20th century was “The Age of Information”. 21st century is/will be “The Age of FREE Information. Join now!
In Soviet Russia Internet surfs you!
“90% of all illegal media comes from states.”
Thanks for providing no other information to back up your statement. I can be like you too.
Don’t you guys know that the music corporations actually own all piracy and they do it so they can raise the cost of cd sales?
nice try buddy
music artists should just consider themselves lucky people actually want to listen to their work and that they can actually make a living at it. That would be a dream come true for most artists.
This is one of the most biased propaganda reports I’ve read. If allofmp3 is illegal, as the Americans claim, then why has no action been brought in the Russian courts? Instead sham actions are lodged in the American, British and German legal systems where there is no jurisdiction. And there is a good answer – in the same week as allofmp3 was closed down Warner Music and Sony BMG announced they were establishing a digital music venture in Russia, in conjunction with Russian billionaire Len Blavatnik, obviously using the same supposedly “illegal” royalty system. Another win for American big business over global consumers.
@Der34
Allofmp3 have had a long standing order many places for all local releases. Which has been a equally longstanding joke among music distributors. The size of their business is much larger than it appears and with the volume they handle they need a steady feed of new titles with cover scans.
A feed that wouldnt be consistant with scene releases only
but hey dont take my word for it just give it some thought what you would spend some the 25 mill usd turnover for.
@bobby
I don’t think I owe you explanations… Moreover I don’t want either. Everyone here saying how they feel or think or know smth about the topic. Want to know what I know – sign in FBI. For now – dismissed.