Abstract

It is common to think of the unauthorized copying of networked digital music as theft. This seems to presuppose that such music is a sort of private property. In this paper, I argue that networked digital music does not have the hallmark features of private property; instead, I argue, it is non-rivalrous and non-excludable and so is better understood as a public good. Coming to terms with this is important if we are to compensate musicians for their work.