The Blame Game: The negative perceptions of the College Consumer

Something I have gathered from my countless experiences as a consumer is that when I am treated with respect and dignity, I am more inclined to return the favor by becoming a loyal customer. Whether it be through returning for future business or recommending to friends and family, when a company or business treats the consumer right, it usually means more business.

However, it has been the practice of the music industry the past 4 or 5 years to completely alienate and disrespect important members of their consumer base. Whether it be by suing eight year old children and their unsuspecting mothers, or by writing off all college students as ruthless pirates who abuse their high speed university networks to steal music at unprecedented rates. Any and all of these tactics accomplish a couple things for the music industry as a whole.

First, this destroys the public perception of the major labels and distributors who generally act as the authority figure within the industry. These tactics enable the consumer to have vehemently negative perceptions of the corporations that run the industry. Largely, these accusations occur as a manner of justification for the poor state in which the industry currently resides. This childish defensive tactic at pointing the finger at consumers who, if presented with the right circumstances, would actually pay money again to listen to music.

A prime example of this finger pointing and how ridiculous it makes the media industries on a whole look is the gross errors recently discovered within a study conducted by the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America). While this was not conducted by the RIAA or a music specific trade organization, this mindset is certainly indicative of the music industry as well.

An artical discussing the subject on All Things Digital quoted that the MPAA recently "admitted that a 2005 study that blamed a significant portion of the film industry’s domestic losses on college movie pirates was erroneous." Originally the study stated teh 44% of its losses could be attributed to college students. Turns out the number is closer to 15%. The justification for such a gross exageration of the numbers is attributed to "human error" by the MPAA.

This notion is ridiculous and epitomizes the problems of perception this industry is facing. Unless companies change their tune and start treating consumers and potential buyers as people again with dignity and respect, the trends that music industry is facing will no doubt continue to worsen.