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  3. Declan Mayes, President of the Music Buyers Association, is furious at a rec

Declan Mayes, President of the Music Buyers Association, is furious at a rec

游客2023-12-24  16
问题     Declan Mayes, President of the Music Buyers Association, is furious at a recent announcement by the recording industry regarding people downloading MP3 music files from the Internet as actual criminals.
    A few parallels may be instructive. If someone copies an audio music cassette for their own private use, they are, strictly speaking, breaking the law. But recording companies have usually turned a blind eye to this practice because prosecuting the few people involved would be difficult, and the financial loss to the company itself is not considered significant. Now the Music Recording Association has announced that it regards individuals downloading music from the Internet as pirates, claiming that they damage the industry in just the same way. "The industry is completely overreaching; it’ll be a laughing stock," says Mayes. "They’re going to arrest some teenager downloading files in his bedroom and sue him for thousands of dollars! This isn’t going to frighten anyone into buying CDs".
    Mayes may have a point. There is a general consensus that CD pirates should be subjected to the full wrath of the law, but few would see an individual downloading music for his or her own pleasure in the same light. However, downloading music files illegally is not as innocuous as making private copies of audio cassettes. The scratchy, distorted cassette copy is a poor version of the original recording, whereas an MP3 file is of high quality and can be stored on a CD, for example. It is this that makes the practice a powerful temptation for music fans, given the high cost of CDs.
    What does Mayes think about claims that music companies could be forced out of business by people downloading music illegally? That’s nonsense. Music companies are always whining about high costs, but that doesn’t prevent them from recording hundreds of CDs by completely unknown artists, many of whom are "packaged" by marketing departments to appeal to young consumers. The companies are simply hoping that one of these new bands or singers will be a hit, and although it can be expensive to promote new artists, the cost of manufacturing the CDs is actually very low.
    This last point would appear to be the focus of resentment against music companies, a CD is far cheaper to produce than its price in the shops would indicate, and profit margins for the music companies are huge. An adult with a reasonable income may not object to paying ￡15 for a CD of classical music, but a teenager buying a CD by the latest pop sensation may find that price rather steep — especially since the latest pop sensation is almost certain to be forgotten within a few months. And while the recording industry can’t be held responsible for the evanescent nature of fame, given the teenage appetite for anything novel, it could lower the prices it charges — especially since technology is making CDs even cheaper to produce.
    This is what Mayes hopes will happen. If the music industry stops exploiting the music-buying public, it can survive. Everyone would rather buy a CD, with an attractive jacket and booklet, than mess around downloading files, but the price has to be reasonable. The problem isn’t going to vanish if the industry carries on trying to make a quick profit. Technology has caught up with the music companies, and trying to fight it by taking people to court will only earn money for the lawyers. [br] The author points out that the music industry cannot be blamed for ______.
选项 A、the fact that fewer teenagers are buying classical music CDs
B、the fact that fashions change quickly
C、the poor quality of modern music
D、the prices that are charged for CDs in shops
答案 B
解析 这看似是道态度题，其实也是细节题。细节题就需要考生精读某段文章尤其是某个解题句子，并能够把这句子理解透彻。解答这道题需要考生通阅整篇文章。“especially since the latest pop sensation is almost certain to be forgotten within a few months．”(尤其是那些最新流行的，他们很快就会忘记的。)从文中可以看出年轻人喜欢买流行的东西，所以这不能怪在唱片公司的身上。但是这道题题目的说法很有技巧，题目的意思是唱片公司不应该为……而受到谴责?所以选第二个答案，唱片公司不应为时尚改变很快这个事实而受到谴责，这其实和文章的意思是一致的。如果考生看懂了题目的意思，也就能比较轻松的解答这道题了。关键是要掌握“be blamed for”的意思。
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