Neil Young posts angry YouTube missive

[bmh67wa]

Story : http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/03/03/neil_young_youtube_grumbles/

Neil Young has hit out at YouTube by complaining it “unfairly” punishes artists to keep the online video business ticking over.

Writing on his blog yesterday, the Sixties rocker and one-time supporter of Ronald Reagan, grumbled about a row that kicked off in December between Warner Music and YouTube after the firms failed to agree to a licensing deal.

"YouTube has a responsibility to respect the artists it facilitates and resist punishing them to make a business point," opined Young on his website.

The Canadian rock star described YouTube as "the new radio" but claimed that unlike the wireless* days of yore, Google's video sharing website fails to equally compensate for every artist and record label.

[Paladwyn]

Hunh? Go figure... Youtube gets mad at the labels for trying to control them, and cuts them off. Then the labels and a few select artists are now pissed. Perhaps they should take a look at the record labels - the people ripping them off from the start.

[zbeast]

You sir really need to talk to your label.
Youtube did what it was told to do remove the offending content.
How is that now ripping you off.. Oh I know, they were sapose to some how make note of every time
someone played a given clip and play your label performance rates for a buzzy, over modulated
audio that a third party had uploaded to the youtube site.

[Tom Brokaw]

Gotta agree with what's been said here. I'm much more likely to blame Warner, the same company crying about the deals they signed with the GH and RB games, for being greedy than I am Youtube/Google.

[Fartingbob]

Once you get as big as someone like Neil Young you do not need a RIAA label. He should make his point and sign up or start himself a indy label that doesnt act like a parasite for both the artist and the consumer.

[georgegad]

Once you get as big as someone like Neil Young you do not need a RIAA label. He should make his point and sign up or start himself a indy label .....

But his label would still own all his old stuff and he would have to release new material, harder yet he would have to make it popular to a generation that doesnt give a crap who he is.
If he went to another label he would have to start working for his money again instead of just sitting back and letting it roll in.
Nobody wants that.