Frank Field's Furd Log has a compelling post about how advertising is the oxygen that keeps P2P breathing. He quotes Paul Myers, CEO of a P2P service called Wippit that offers downloads for a fee, as complaining that mainstream companies are advertising on P2P sites supporting rampant piracy. Those companies, according to Myers in a letter to the British Phonographic Industry, include Nat West, Vodafone, O2, First Direct, NTL, and Renault; all of them were found advertising on eDonkey.

This argument has surfaced frequently in the spam wars, with some saying the problem would go away if only companies weren't turning to spammers to market their goods and services. That's true, but it isn't that simple. Spammers rarely are employed directly by the manufacturer they're promoting, but rather by 3rd-party vendors. Does that absolve the manufacturer of any responsibility for the spam?

Not necessarily. Ideally, a company like Vodafone -- a leading mobile phone provider in Europe and a minority owner of Verizon Wireless -- should tell its 3rd-party vendors not to hire spammers, or advertise on P2P sites. But even if they're not prescient enough to do that, it would be nice if they'd stop the spam or pull the P2P ad when informed of its existence. P2P is obviously popular with young consumers, a key demographic for a cell phone company. But advertising on eDonkey does beg one question -- why target consumers who are avoiding payment for their consumption?

posted by Patrick Ross @ 1:55 PM | General

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