" Some Has it Leaked members think we’re a website that loves piracy, here to support and supply the suckers who only want stuff for free. Nope. This may come as a surprise, but we actually don’t support piracy. Shocking, isn’t it? Has it Leaked was born from the idea that labels and fans should […]"
SHOULD WE NOT ALLOW ALBUM DELUXE VERSIONS ON THE SITE?
“Should we not allow deluxe album versions on the site? Why? “
Some Has it Leaked members think we’re a website that loves piracy, here to support and supply the suckers who only want stuff for free. Nope. This may come as a surprise, but we actually don’t support piracy. Shocking, isn’t it?
Has it Leaked was born from the idea that labels and fans should meet somewhere in the middle, instead of overzealous pirates hacking the RIAA or labels putting annoying DRM restrictions on music. At Has it Leaked, we would like to be a mediator, treating leaks as news.
For the labels, we’ve given them a fighting chance. Using our site, they actually have a chance at stopping a leak, that’s why we ask you to report the leak sources. With our site, the labels and the artists also have a chance to communicate directly with the fans who are waiting to download a free copy of their album. We want to be a forum where they can provide a reason to not download illegally and maybe even add lucrative pre-order links. Also, if the labels or artists sign-up for an email leak alert, they’ll get an instant notification that the album has leaked. This is a much more direct method than the traditional practice of spending their money on useless so-called “Web Sheriffs”, which have been proven to be faulty.
our site is for music fans, not fans of piracy
On the other hand, we don’t ignore the fact that album leaks are a big part of the music industry. These days, a lot of fans often have heard an album before the reviews hit the newsstands. We also saw a huge number of fake download leaks out there, aiming to steal fans’ credit cards. Our mission was to give fans a platform to wait together, discuss the album and the hype surrounding it.
We know, being diehard fans of certain groups ourselves, it’s not about the piracy – it’s about the feeling that you can’t wait to listen to that new album. But it’s also the reason as to why we don’t provide links to downloads, our site is for the music fans, not fans of piracy. If you want to delve deeper into the site’s agenda, I would suggest reading my about piece.
fans and labels need to meet in the middle, again
Lately we’ve seen an increase in the number of duplicate entries on our site, many of these coming from the fact that so-called “deluxe” versions of albums are being released alongside the standard releases. To me, those deluxe versions on our site represent the fans who simply want all music to be free, and would never consider buying or pre-ordering an album. Before Napster and the whole Internet boom, deluxe albums were rare and were often meant for the Japanese market who had to deal with a high piracy rate. Nowadays, deluxe albums are a way for the labels to convince those who downloaded the leak to buy the album – and to give them something extra in exchange for forking out some cash. All of this gets back to my argument that fans and labels need to meet in the middle, I think it’s fair that we let those deluxe versions not be a part of this site. Let the label have that minor upper hand.
The last few years labels and artist have been good to us
The last few years labels and artist have been good to us – Free album streams are now a common thing, and they are often being released when an album has leaked. It’s like they’ve come to terms that it’s difficult to stop a leak and therefore give us a reasonable alternative. So why not let the extra tracks added to a deluxe version be their way of giving fans a reason to buy an album they already have?
So, should we or shouldn’t we allow the deluxe/limited/BestBuy/exclusive/etc versions of albums on our site? I believe we should scrap them. And no, it’s not going to change the world, or affect the industry at all – but I do like to take a stance. However, this is a community, not a dictatorship – it’s up to you to decide.
Post your thoughts below!
Sincerely,
Has it Leaked founder, Staffan Ulmert (thanks to Sean May for the revision)
The Deluxe Version concept of two bonus tracks that comes out the same day as the “normal” album yes, it shoud go away, but the revisions – as in five more songs – that comes out months ago from the original release should stay.
I believe “deluxe” albums should be purchased and not leaked for all to have. Some “deluxe” albums have fantastic and sometimes very rare or special extras that you can ONLY get with the “deluxe” versions and therefore they should have to be purchased. Deluxe is special for a reason.
i’d say drop deluxe and singles too. or at least have some sort of on / off switch. but the problem comes when you have a deluxe edition that means something. the Bowie Next Day Extra ‘deluxe’ that is out in a few days is almost as big a deal as the original release earlier this year. The Ellie Goulding too. They are not the regular album released in some supermarket on the same day with an extra track, they are a major re-issue almost. And a blanket ban on ‘deluxe’ editions would also see highly anticipated leaks like the Pink Floyd ‘immersion’ sets banned, and i think that would be a bad idea. So i’d refine it to banning deluxe editions that are due on the same day as the regular edition. If these do leak, just add it to the original leak post I say.