Earlier quoted context omitted.
Would you have a problem with it if they gave it away for free (and didn't have to worry about covering their operating costs, via a deus ex machina?) That's a good question... I honestly don't know! I'd definitely have less of a problem with it... which is, I realize, pretty dumb as that doesn't alleviate the harm to the artists. About the only intellectual justification I can come up with is that, as a free service…
> I'd definitely have less of a problem with it... which is, I realize, pretty dumb as that doesn't alleviate the harm to the artists. > About the only intellectual justification I can come up with is that, as a free service, it's easier to position something like that as a way to discover artists. I think, by selling a subscription, their customers would be more likely to view their consumption as legitimate, and so…
In addition, a library, as a source of physical copies, can't lend and re-lend the same content over and over. Which is why, of course, ebook lending programs at libraries are often limited to a certain number of copies... there's an attempt to apply that same restriction to digital content.
Lastly, the lending is always time-limited, unlike digital services.