SROP Library and Institutional Sales

Musicians, painters, writers, and other artists should obviously be compensated for their work. We as a society fail miserably to support the arts that we all depend on for nearly all non-natural beauty in the world and in our lives. Artists often give up a tremendous amount in terms of personal wealth and security for the privilege of Arting Freely and Often. And a good percentage of what a customer pays for art ends up in the pockets of middle-dudes.

I'm getting sick contemplating a quite-likely digital future in which everything in the arts is licensed by giant corporations who are ready to mutilate anyone or anything that gets in the way of their profit margin and their "rights"—no matter how long an artist has been dead. I'm also sick of corporate unwillingness to negotiate reasonable terms with other institutions, particularly libraries—because nothing is really about art, it's all about profit and control.

This story just burned us up: the University of Washington Library was trying to get a particular digital album for their music students. The terms? They could pay $250 plus a licensing fee to get access to 25% of the album for two years. (In the past, they might have paid $25 to buy a CD they could loan out. A reasonable music company would burn them a one-off CD and sell it to them for $50—or even $100—with a smile.

Smashed-Rat-on-Press has embraced a policy of fighting back against greed and unreigned corporate cultural control with our new Library and Institutional Licensing terms. For a modest one-time packaging fee, SROP will license the entire catalog of publications for unlimited loan distribution to bona-fide public and university libraries in the USA and abroad. Librarians are welcome to contact the Rodent at SROP to learn about our attractive terms.

And now I'll return to the comfort of my cozy room beneath the rock.