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From: dmm@calmasd.UUCP (David M. MacMillan)
Newsgroups: net.wobegon
Subject: Wouldn't it be nice if ...
Message-ID: <475@calmasd.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 2-Jul-85 17:12:42 EDT
Article-I.D.: calmasd.475
Posted: Tue Jul  2 17:12:42 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 5-Jul-85 06:52:27 EDT
Reply-To: dmm@ra.UUCP (David M. MacMillan)
Organization: Calma Company, San Diego, CA
Lines: 41


     Though I am new to this forum, I have for some time
had a thought in the "wouldn't it be nice if ..." category.
Perhaps it is an absurd thought (given the economics), but
anyway, here it is.
     Wouldn't it be nice if all of the old PHCs were available
on cassette?  Certainly it would, but is it practical?  With
something like 500 shows, at two cassettes each, few people
could afford an entire set (I couldn't).  Nonetheless, I would
like to have selected back issues; Jean Redpath shows, for 
instance, or the 1984 christmas show.  Now, if enough people
wanted a few back issues, it just might be possible to convince
Minnessota Public Radio to make them all available.  A computer
network forum might be the ideal place to evaluate such an idea.
     As I (simplistically?) see it, the costs for MPR would be
(1) preparing a cursory listing of the tapes, (2) mailing it to
Wireless subscribers, and (3) reproducing the tapes manually on
a high-speed recorder.  They could realize no economy of scale.
The packaging needn't be fancy - just a plain tape case with an
item number and a copyright notice.
     The advantages to MPR would be (1) satisfaction of many 
devoted PHC listeners, (2) consequent further plugging of the
program by same listeners, (3) preservation of the programs in
the case of a fire at the MPR vault, and (4) a chance for
literature students such as myself to do some "research" into
PHC and try to make the stuffy academic community take note.
     Additionally, public radio stations might be persuaded to
buy fairly complete sets, as enticing material for on-the-air
pledge drives if nothing else.
     MPR's disadvantages would be (1) only marginal profitability,
and (2) increased pirating and other copyright violations.
     Another problem, I suppose, is that I have neither the time
nor the political expertise to coordinate any attempt to persuade
MPR.  As I said, this is an idea in the "wouldn't it be nice ..."
category.
     Also, I don't know my copyright law well enough to know
if MPR would have difficulty in reproducing the work of guest
performers.

     Is this idea ahead of, behind, or just plain beside its
time?  I welcome your comments.