I purchase all of my music via Amazon. I live in Australia and I refuse to pay $20 for a CD when I can get the same product via Amazon for half the price. Even when shipping is added on, I still save. What I normally do is purchase 8 to 10 CD’s at the same time and I really save. From time to time I chuck in a book or a DVD from an artist that I like. I recently did a few pre-orders and along with them I purchased “Shut Up and Give Me The Mic” from Dee Snider from Amazon for $9.99 in hardcover. In Australia the hard cover book is retailing for $32.99.

I also purchased “Hail To The King” from Avenged Sevenfold from Amazon. So the actual price of the CD/DVD deluxe edition came to $13.99. The postage cost was $2.04. The total cost of the CD/DVD delivered to my front door was $16.03. I also got an Amazon AutoRip of the album. So the total cost of the CD/DVD deluxe package with an MP3 rip was $16.03. To buy the deluxe edition of the album in Australia, the prices range from $19.99 to $28.99. Seriously, that is dead set ridiculous and a rip off.

Another thing, Karnivool is an Australian band. Their new album Asymmetry is priced at $19.99 in Australia. That is at Brick and Mortar stores. Online the CD is even more expensive. On Amazon it is priced at $11.99. So I purchased it from Amazon.

But piracy is hurting the artists, screams the RIAA.

No, piracy is not hurting the artists. Stupid record labels are hurting the artists. It is the labels that have failed the artists. It is the labels that have failed the music business.

So as a purchaser of entertainment products from Amazon (a U.S company), do my purchasers rank as U.S sales or Australian sales of the purchased product. Does the place/country of delivery get factored in when the purchases are reported to Soundscan?