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Comment by easyThrowaway | Hacker News Reader

Also, if you're wondering "Well, I could get better terms for my art" - Like I said, when Spotify arrived and you were signed on a label you HAD to sign the part that said "Yes, you can put my music online on Spotify and I will get paid peanuts" or else, unless you were Madonna or Taylor Swift.

Or, sure, you can also terminate your record deal. Hope you have 500 grands around just for that.

Frankly I don't see it ending much better for visual artists.

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There was another path here - collective bargaining. When small individuals are bullied by large corporations it's because those corporations want something from the small individuals... they certainly don't care about one or two small artists walking away from the platform - but if artists can organize and bargain as a group they can ensure a fair outcome.

I think the modern world has become too complacent in terms of labor organization - the time of plenty left a lot of people content to take whatever was given to them because there was such a glut of excess that it was freely shared. That sharing is coming to an end and we're returning to a time when we need to demand fair and equitable treatment.

Freelancers in the united states are not allowed to bargain collectively for better prices, as that's considered market manipulation/price fixing. ["Independent Contractors" are literally banned from forming a union in the USA.]

Serious question: Are actors, writers, etc not considered "Independent Contractors" in the US?

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