CD Trading Site LaLa Takes Off

If you want to learn what a satisfying web experience feels like spend a few minutes on CD trading site LaLa.com.  LaLa delivers on it’s singular promise – to cheaply facilitate CD trades between individuals with elegant speed and simplicity .

But depending on which side of the corporate fence you sit on Lala.com is "either the music industry’s salvation or yet another nail in its coffin".  "This is a nudge-nudge, wink-wink way to get around the law," Ted Cohen, senior vice president of digital development at EMI Music told the LA Times. "It makes it easier for people to copy CDs and steal music. Why would the music industry do anything to encourage a company like  this?"

LaLa.com goes beyond being just a broker making music recommendations, building community, and eventually selling new CD’s and downloads.  They claim to discourage the sale of CD copies. LaLa also tries to give back to the music community by earmarking 20% of the $1 (plus 48 cents shipping) for payments directly to musicians.

The vexing problem for the music industry is that selling your used stuff is certainly never going to be illegal as any yard saler, EBay fanatic or used record store customer will joyfully attest.  And shouldn’t almost anything that encourages people to enjoy more music be celebrated?

But the music industry can only see lost sales and privately say they can’t imagine partnering with this kind of site.  So just as with peer to peer file sharing the labels will not be any where near another place where tens of thousands of serious music fans are sure to be hanging out.   The labels will again loose this battle and the consumer will triumph. As Roman philosopher Quintilian said "When defeat is inevitable, it is wisest to yield."