Karaoke Forums

I have to laugh at your characterization if SC as "corporate." Just how big a corporation do you think SC is?

iTunes audits you every time you use their product. People who use music commercially get "audited" all the time. It's part of the business.

SC's audit is a one-time thing, per system that you own. We don't require future audits. If you add discs to your system there is an update procedure that costs nothing.

Now back to the first question...SC is a small business by anyone's definition. One shareholder. About 7 employees. By the way, that shareholder also runs the company and hasn't taken salary or dividends in going on three years. Every dime he has made, and then some, has gone into keeping his business afloat.

You've said a lot of unkind things about SC. Some of that is opinion, which you're entitled to. Most of it is based on incomplete information, coupled with a lot of unwarranted assumptions on your part. I sympathize with your frustration, but you've really got it wrong about SC. The fact of the matter is that it is less expensive now to enter this industry legally than it ever has been. All we are asking is that you follow the rules that level the playing field for everyone. If you can't do that, I assure you that SC has no desire to have you as a customer. We have way too many of that kind of "customer" as it is.

Chris,
It was an exciting night!!

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SoundChoice Certification coming soon!

Smooth, I am one of those here who completely agrees with the above, even to the point that I have stayed original mfrs. disc based. I can't imagine why ANYONE would go to PC in this litigous atmosphere. Personal convenience does not outweigh controlling business liability.

All of that being said, the problem is that when you first posted, you advocated pirate practices, meaning using tracks that weren't paid for.

NO ONE here, regardless of whether they are pro- or anti- SC methods, will agree with that. We ( professional Karaoke Hosts) don't like pirates (track/music thieves).

People on BOTH sides know that stealing is unethical and wrong.

People on BOTH sides know that it devalues the business as a whole.

No one on EITHER side is going to help anyone that does it.

You said that you have access to SGB and SuperCore discs. Good. Use them to start, build as you earn, and run a disc based show to limit liability. It's not like that set is exceedingly heavy to carry....

Done. How hard is that? Legal too!

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

I don't know why - or if I'm the only one- but after re-reading the whole thread I am starting to get a strong feeling that maybe we all may be on the receiving end of a serious chain-yanking....

I can't explain it, just a feeling....

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

It really IS so simple!




Joe.. You may be right.. like I said earlier, he was 'spewing' alot of crap and then contradicting himself. He was here all night and most of the afternoon. Was 7am his time when he said goodbye.
Yes, I was up all night too... have a torn rotator cuff that just won't let me sleep. But now.. pain pill and a nap before work tonight...

cya'll later!

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SoundChoice Certification coming soon!

I had that feeling, too, Joe, because surely no one with any sense would expect to find quarter here for those positions. Then I spent 5 minutes figuring out who he was, and in the process I realized he was actually serious.

It was nice having everybody on the same side for once, though. And I actually agree with you about the disc issue. If you stick to original discs, you don't have to worry about any lawsuits. I know Kurt would be happy if everybody took that view and just used their original SC discs only. We're happy to accommodate people who want to media-shift--we just expect them to follow the rules for doing so--but it is an accommodation. Our preference is for discs.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee was priceless!! Best laugh of the day for me!

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SoundChoice Certification coming soon!

That is not what I am saying at all. What they are doing to KJs is invasive, above and beyond their mandate, which is to sell products. I am not going to SUBMIT to their rule for to use a product that I am BUYING from them. By purchasing their product, I did my part. If they don't trust their customers, that is not my problem, nor will it be. I will scrap the entire idea of using a laptop to run shows, and just use disks to avoid their BS. I REFUSE to pay recurring fees on something that I PURCHASED. Do you understand that that is extortion?? I REFUSE to be audited. The IRS has never had reason to audit me, I will NOT tolerate it from a CD manufacturer. Do you get it yet?? For decades people ran Karaoke shows without this crap going on. I am not going to start dealing with it now. I don't need the extra expense, or the hassle. Like I said, if you want to submit to Corporate rule, that is your business. I have cost the manus NOTHING, because I haven't even gone out to do any shows yet. I haven't started. I haven't even approached a venue, because I am not quite ready to. My original intent was to go computerized, use what I have, plus some downloaded content to get started. You people have changed my mind on that. I will wait until I get some more disks, use a player, and be legal. BUT, I will not let the karaoke companies bully me into audits or any other nonsense. I Kiss nobody's butt, ever. That has always been my policy. I am not about to start now. Once I get started, they can send all the inspectors they want to my show, and they will not find anything amiss. You people, while buying their products, are selling your souls to them, and you have this lawyer on here telling you how wonderful it is to do so. Fighting piracy can be accomplished without bending over to the manus. Just scope out other shows, and report the pirates. They will get investigated and sued. There is no reason for you people to have to expose your LEGAL collections to these people.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

Use the product in it's intended way (CDG) and not computer, and you would never have to submit to anything as far as an audit.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Hey Genius, did you read my post? That is what I am going to do!! OPEN your damn eyes!!

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

Then you have absolutely no reason NOT to use SC products for the fear of being audited is no longer there when using discs!

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

I don't like their practices, so there is EVERY reason not to use their products. I don't like how they treat innocent people. Simple as that. Their policies aren't stopping piracy, it's penalizing legit people. Just making them PAY for an audit is extortion. If you don't show trust to your customers, without them bending their knees to you, you shouldn't be in business.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

I don't see it that way. You don't have a legal right to shift a product to another medium ie hard drive without permission of the owners, which is all the audit is about - giving said permission. If you do not want to have to pay for that priviledge, then you don't shift to computer & run from disc - simple as that. Since you stated that is what you intend to do, you have nothing to worry about in any respect.
Unless actual copyright holders of the music itself decided to go after kj's, which I don't see that happening. Publisher houses are a different story, have seen kj's and dj's busted for playing in clubs (they were busted too) that didn't pay PR fees.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Instead of having to jump through hoops, you people should be lobbying the government, or whoever to change the laws so we CAN media shift without the hassles and expense. I understand you people think it's the price of doing business, but what are we in business for? I'm not in business to enrich my supplier,outside of buying his product. There's no guarantee. You pay the audit fee, get audited, get the certification and the letter to not get sued, who is to say that later on you won't be named in a lawsuit anyway, because some investigator decides that you need to be sued. How long does that letter last?? It doesn't protect you all that long. Then what, go through the process again?? THAT is extortion. You are LITERALLY paying them protection money. You people are fighting the wrong fight. Fighting piracy is one thing, but you aren't fighting for the RIGHT to media-shift what you buy. You are happy with it being a "privilege", that has to be paid for. You SHOULD be lobbying the Government to change the laws.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

I think many here have written to our governors about changing copyright laws in order to media shift legally for commercial use. I do at least once every 4 months. But it takes time.
You seem to be pretty gung ho about the issue, start the ball rolling, i'll be the first one to sign the petition - willing to bet everyone here would do the same! But until the time comes where the laws do change to accomodate current technology, we need to continue & do what we feel is in our best interests. Hell it tool over 10 years of arguing with the manus to finally to get them to release ANYTHING on digital format, but it finally did. It took even longer to have them say - ok you can use the computer, but in order to do so, you have to pay a small fee to prove what is on your computer is what you actually own - why? Because of the pirates using the computers that don't own a damn thing! This separates the legit users from the thieves. And again, there is no 'extortion' money if you just stay with discs.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

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Really? Rat each other out? So if you saw someone carting a bunch of stuff out of your neighbor and friend's house, you would just turn your head and not "rat them out"? Cuz that's just wrong? Whatever!

Get real! Pirates are scum! If you don't get that, maybe you shouldn't be on this forum anymore! We all argue and look at things different but when it comes to someone buying music for PENNIES PER SONG compared to all of us spending thousands, HELL YEAH we will "rat them out" It's not dishonorable Comprehend? You've been given a bunch of good advice, really nothing left here for you, you've made your point, the forum as a whole has made theirs. Good luck to you!

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KingBing Entertainment C'mon Up! I have a song for you!!! [font=MS Sans Serif][/font]

Ok, how many more times do I have to tell you that I am going to run legally?? I am going to run disks, instead of my computer. It's going to take me longer before I can get started but I WILL get started. YOU are an unforgiving S.O.B. I have not even run my own show. I have been running my friend's show using HIS disks since '05, when he can't. The music that I had downloaded is NO LONGER on my computer. Whether you want to believe me or not, I couldn't care less!! Ratting out someone who is robbing your neighbor, and ratting out someone who downloaded some songs to PRACTICE with, AT HOME are two different things. What I do in business and what I do at home are two different things. It's like smoking pot. If I smoke pot in public, I can get busted for it. If I smoke pot in my home, as long as I have less than an ounce, nobody can touch me. Not that I do, I'm just using it as an example. When the day comes that I start a show I will post it here, and will CHALLENGE ALL OF YOU, including Mr. Lawyerman, to come to my show and find ANYTHING wrong with it!!! Do you understand that, YET??? Now GET OFF MY F*^*ING BACK!!

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

Sounds to me like Smoothedge69 needs to smoke some pot....

!!!! Sometimes I wish I could. Me and weed don't get along too well. We haven't for many years.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

Yup, me too. I did it quite a bit around 35-40 years ago. It ended the night I got the munchies and ate a whole bag of pistachio nuts- while being too stoned to hull them. Call me Machine Gun Joe, but after an excrutiatingly uncomfortable day, it was easy to call it quits....

BTW- eating a pound of caramels at a sitting can make your jaws sore for awhile too....

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."