RIAA thinks CDs should be three times more expensive

The outfit which is competing with pirated and online music which can be traded for next to near nothing, thinks that punters should be paying at least three times what they are for CDs.

A page on the RIAA's web site, has been designed to tell consumers that they are actually getting a good deal from the record companies. The page points out that between 1983 and 1996, the average price of a CD fell by more than 40 per cent. During the same period of time, consumer prices rose by nearly 60 per cent. It argues that if CD prices had risen at the same rate as consumer prices over this period, the average retail price of a CD in 1996 would have been $33.86 instead of $12.75.

However as Techdirt points out, the comments reflect bogus economics as it does not take into account the fact that tech products get cheaper over time. It also shows that the outfit does not really understand the level of online competition it is facing.

More here. µ