RIAA TV Boxed Sets

[PatrickG]

I was reading a review of the Northern Exposure DVD boxed set and I noticed, apparently, that music had to be substituted to keep the DVD cost down.

Now, I never noticed this with my Buffy boxed sets but I found this bit from the Northern Exposure review interesting and informative:

Before saying a couple of things about the seasons, let me say that people who complain about the soundtrack really need to . . . I apologize beforehand for any impoliteness here . . . shut up!!! Look, music substitution is just going to be part of the future from here on out in TV shows coming out on DVD. There is simply no way around it. Or rather, if you want to blame someone, blame ASCAP and BMI and RIAA. Here is the real deal: as long as these folks continue to exact such huge royalties for the use of songs, we are going to get vastly less expensive songs substituted for the original ones. There is simply no way around it. The makers of the DVDs have two choices: substitute music and sell the sets at reasonable prices or use the original music and sell the sets at absurdly high prices. Want to pay $100 per season of NORTHERN EXPOSURE? Well, neither do I. But to get the original music that is what it is going to cost. So, the choice really is substituting music or paying through the nose for our DVDs. This is the very reason why ALLY McBEAL may never some out on DVD. That show was written too tightly to particular songs to enable substitution. Right now they are unable to come up with pricing that makes it possible to bring it out on DVD. Someday? Maybe. But until such nonproductive entities as I mentioned above (especially RIAA), who own rights but really don't do anything for anyone that matters, especially the artists, start bringing the fees charged down to a reasonable level, substitution is going to be the standard practice.

So... If I understand this correctly, TV shows can stay in reruns forever (using songs from the original broadcast) without being terribly butchered up, even as they face dwindling profits. But throw in the prospect of DVD sales and the RIAA wants the seasons to sell for double what the market will support in the name of "artists"?

Seriously, anyone in favor of intellectual property law as it stands (or arguing for further extensions) is a BASTARD in my opinion. It's not for the sake of art.

It ceases to be about the sake of art or artists when you're talking about reaping profits after everyone who created a work of art is DEAD. And that's exactly what people at Disney, Scientology, the RIAA and politicians like Mary Bono are talking about.

They aren't in favor of protecting artists. They're in favor of something no less heinous in my eyes than necrophelia.

Of course, the RIAA will stroll out some poor artist's grandkid as a posterchild for why copyright should be forever. When, in fact, the real issue is that CORPORATIONS want copyright to be forever. And that grandkid or great-grandkid should not be ENTITLED to exclusive control over his grandfather's creativity; it belongs to ALL of us at a certain point and, eventually, that grandkid or great-grandkid should be encouraged to get off her/his ass and create some new intellectual property rather than milking the family inheritance.

I'm no fan of hacking or piracy. I don't use peer to peer networking except mytunes and I pay for my downloads there. The only "illegal" downloads I've ever made were off easy to find webpages which, in almost every case, the artist was aware of. If a band has an official myspace site and puts their music for download without the permission of their record label, I don't feel bad. If a movie director has a site with downloads of songs used in their films, I don't feel guilty. But I AM disgusted with people hoarding hundreds of episodes of hundreds of TV shows on their computer. I am disgusted at the thought of someone having thousands upon thousands of illegally downloaded CDs.

But I'm more sick of the RIAA and the corporate intellectual property gestapo which is trying to KILL the public domain.

Does anyone know of a way to get involved in this issue? I'm afraid that most people are scared to speak up or find it difficult to be passionate about an issue like this. But I think it's time to ACT. It's time for me, at least, to write to elected officials and let them know that the death of the public domain is a make or break issue for me in elections and that there are thousands more like me.

This has been an issue where corporate money has controlled political policy for over 25 years and it's TIME to send a message to people in Washington that politicians who base their policy on who finances their campaign can rot in Hell.

[Lone Ranger]

IIRC, the Herculean task of getting clearance for music is what is keeping WKRP in Cincinnati in DVD limbo.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

Married with Children has been fighting to get the original music back for the opening theme " Love & Marriage ". Of course from this article its not gonna happen .

[PatrickG]

I suppose the transition of my post seems odd... But my point is that this is one more way that the RIAA's "pro-artist" stance falls apart.

A "pro-artist" organization wouldn't call for work to be re-edited or sold above market value. A "pro-artist" organization would let artists call the shots.

[Shellhead]

I suspect that music substitution won't be an issue for more recent tv shows (like Veronica Mars or the O.C., for example), because they will know about this issue and negotiate accordingly when they get the rights to use a song in an episode. Older shows, like Northern Exposure, failed to anticipate the widespread enthusiasm for tv-to-dvd collections.

[Ed Cunard]

A "pro-artist" organization wouldn't call for work to be re-edited or sold above market value. A "pro-artist" organization would let artists call the shots.

That's the thing, though--which artists? The ones who did the tv show, or the ones with the rights to the music?

[Matt Algren]

There's an episode of the Simpsons that briefly uses the song "The Summer Wind". On the commentary, they talked about the obscene amount of money they had to pay to use the song in the first place instead of writing a sound alike.

Then for the DVD, royalties had to be paid again. For two bars of a song no one really cares about.

Also, this is the kind of thing that finally put MST3K off the air, and a big part of the reason some of the best episodes won't be making it to DVD.

[Matt Algren]

I suspect that music substitution won't be an issue for more recent tv shows (like Veronica Mars or the O.C., for example), because they will know about this issue and negotiate accordingly when they get the rights to use a song in an episode. Older shows, like Northern Exposure, failed to anticipate the widespread enthusiasm for tv-to-dvd collections.
IIRC, that's already being done on the WB shows that integrate more current music. I seem to remember there being a bit of a wait for the first couple seasons of Charmed, and I think they finally substituted in a few places.

[Michael P]

There's an episode of the Simpsons that briefly uses the song "The Summer Wind". On the commentary, they talked about the obscene amount of money they had to pay to use the song in the first place instead of writing a sound alike.

Then for the DVD, royalties had to be paid again. For two bars of a song no one really cares about.

Also, this is the kind of thing that finally put MST3K off the air, and a big part of the reason some of the best episodes won't be making it to DVD.
They managed to get Manos and Santa Claus Conquers The Martians, though.

[Shellhead]

IIRC, that's already being done on the WB shows that integrate more current music. I seem to remember there being a bit of a wait for the first couple seasons of Charmed, and I think they finally substituted in a few places.

That makes sense that the WB shows should be able integrate the current music. Instead of playing classic rock songs by bands that just want to get paid, the WB shows are more likely to give new artists a shot, and those bands want and need the exposure so they will play ball. I've been listening to Modest Mouse for years, but my current girlfriend never heard of them until one of their songs was on The O.C. Okay, that's not a WB show, but it is kind of WB-type show.

[Sheldon]

Yeah I also heard the the Felicity boxsets had the same problems with music rights.

[howyadoin]

IIRC, the Herculean task of getting clearance for music is what is keeping WKRP in Cincinnati in DVD limbo.That's the first thing that came to my mind, too.

Greatest TV show ever.

[Gilda Dent]

The boxed sets for Roswell had all the songs replaced also. It works about as well with the new music as with the original.

Gilda