It has come to our attention that eBay is, at times, flooded with homemade CDr's that are being sold as original boot releases.
As Bob Dylan boot releases are not authorized by SONY,
their copyright claims are invalid.
There is no legitimate revenue lost by these boot discs being recorded at home, and redistributed.
HOWEVER.... There is an intrinsic monetary value associated with a factory produced boot silver CD and package.
Collectors are willing to pay a premium price, knowing that there are only a few hundred pieces produced.
In the case of a homemade CDr, there is NO VALUE associated with it!!! Anyone with a PC or MAC can make them.
They are comparable in value to a homemade cassette tape (No value other than the music).
The unwary buyer finds themselves with a worthless CDr.
The same music could have been obtained for free from a trader.
© 2004
CD Pinkerton / bobsboots.com © 2004
CD Pinkerton / bobsboots.com © 2004
CD Pinkerton / bobsboots.com
Here is a rule of thumb: If there are numbers that have been ink
printed onto the
clear (see photo) center ring, it's a CDr.
Silver
masters do not use this technique of identification. The ink used for
printing these identifications on a
CDr is most difficult (if not impossible) to
remove
without damaging the fragile plastic disc. Remember... there are some
commercial
distributors that produce a CDr package. Check
with
the images and reviews on the bobsboots.com website before making any
boot
purchases. Some CDr manufacturers are no longer
using this means of identification. With a clear label pasted onto an
un-inked CD-r, detection in a photo becomes all but
impossible. Worse yet, there are now home printers available that will
print directly onto the CD. If you are buying on eBay,
spend a little extra and get buyer's protection. Once you have the
package, examine the artwork. It is still relatively easy to spot an
insert that has been ink jet printed onto a punched out, folded on the
spine sides, card stock (or worse yet, plain paper). The
majority of boot manufacturers use thin stock that have folded spine
sides that are perforated at the fold. They have been printed via
professional mass produced offset print methods. The ink won't run, and
the edges are cut razor smooth. Many homemade covers still bear the
micro perforated paper edges that are the tell-tale sign of a punched
out, home printed cover. Lastly, turn the disc to its shiny play side,
and look at the die stamped id numbers in the center ring. Most times
they will match with the catalog or skew number on the package. Through
one or all of these methods, one should be able to spot a CD-r.
If the seller is selling several titles, he knows what he's doing. If
he won't return your money, collect from eBay. Turn him in as a bad
faith seller.
© 2004
CD Pinkerton / bobsboots.com © 2004
CD Pinkerton / bobsboots.com © 2004
CD Pinkerton / bobsboots.com