Free is nice...or is it?

You can't deny every consumer loves to see the words "FREE" no matter what it's for, whether it's something we want or have never heard of, free doesn't cost a penny, so why not try it, right?

In most cases, sure, but not always.

This is a marketing technique known as "freemium," which, according Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired Magazine says is a brilliant marketing strategy for the gaming industry. I would have to agree, to a certain extent. Sure, this type of marketing may attract newer customers but generally speaking, with the way media is now available (via hacking, pirating), it's almost inevitable that the gaming industry will have to follow suit with the way the movie industry is going. Think Netflix.

We're good citizens, well at least most of us are. Truth is, we may hack or pirate for one fo two reasons: it's cheaper (free) and if we absolutely can't buy it. So in this case, game designers and console companies usually create limitations to games and more often than not, games come with some form of bug or fault. In this case, the people who would hack a game would not only be better off with a better copy of the game, but also a free copy. Now I'm not advocating for piracy but until the laws change or in this case, game designers can find a way to give the players what they want without any bugs, there will always be people searching for free.

Thanks to the way the internet presents digital media, everything is more likely than not, to be available online, for free or a freemium. According to Douglas MacMillan's The Music Industry's New Internet Problem, sites such as Pandora, Imeem, Last.fm, have led way as a substitution for music and how they are available to listeners. Because services such as Pandora offer a free alternative to "owning" a disc or album which would otherwise put profits into the artists pocket. This in turn does affect both the consumer and the artists, because if we don't fund the artists, then they wouldn't be able to produce music.

So what is the solution to this? Honestly, I wish it was as simple as black and white. Truthfully, the way technology is advancing and how people want things fast and easy, I don't think buying tangibles is the way for companies in any field to survive. They will have to adopt some form of streaming, and/or utilize the power of the internet. Hey, if you can't beat them, join them.