I think Antonios is complaining about the fact that he cannot sell his original CDs on eBay ...

Actually I think he was trying to buy a higher level on ebay, but was unable to, apparently because CRI informed ebay about the licensing materials it now distributes with each new set of CD's.

If Centerpointe wants to restrict individuals from re-selling their CD's, then that is their prerogative. However, IMO it should be incumbent upon them to inform potential buyers of this, before and not after they make the purchase.

Can an agreement like that even be considered legally binding, if the customer isn't informed about it in advance, or isn't required to sign something?

I know I would be a little surprised if I bought a music CD, and then found a message in the liner notes telling me I couldn't re-sell it at a used CD shop..!

As far as the ethics of the situation are concerned, I do agree that it is unethical for someone to duplicate and/or make the exact content of the Centerpointe CD's freely available, for instance by copying and posting a complete level on a P2P site, or distributing/selling CD copies of the original.

However if someone has purchased a level, then resale IMO is just as honorable an option for them as it was for CRI to sell the material in the first place.
Like I said, if CRI wants to legally restrict that, fine, but the customer should be given notice of this before and not after the fact.

[This message has been edited by garics (edited November 18, 2005).]

Well I guess the money-back guarantee covers the "before" part...I assume they still offer a money-back guarantee.

They should still let the customer know sometime during the sale, that there are these restrictions on the product after it is sold.

Don't they have a sticker on the cellophane wrap on the package with some sort of legal agreement stuff on it? They should definitely put it on there.

They might be doing this to keep people from buying, copying, and selling... which makes sense to do, actually, given the price of the products.

It doesn't surprise me that Centerpointe, being as unabashedly money-driven as they are, would do this. If you prevent people from selling their CDs, then customers must use Centerpointe as the sole provider of the product, so ... more money for them.

Oh ... listened to the Perfect Meditation CD level one for the first time last night.

I must say that it was a pretty intense experience. It actually gave me a headache. I had a feeling like there was a lot of stuff going on inside of my head and felt like it was going to pop. Don't know if that is good (given the philosophy that you're "baking" while meditating) or not.

There are crackles and audio-artifacts on the disks that are irritating. The accompanying material explains that this is due to the incredibly advanced audio technology producing effects that are not produceable by lower quality headphones.

Well, it must be super dooper amazing technology, because they occur on high quality Sennheiser headphones. More likely it's just crap that the creator didn't have the technology or skill to clean up.

Graics,

I heard and saw it in writing from Bill Harris that CRI permits the resell
of the cds/tapes but the copying.

Cheers,

[QUOTE]Originally posted by babayada:
[B]Oh ... listened to the Perfect Meditation CD level one for the first time last night.

Babayada

Would you recommend the Perfect Meditation CD given the experience you have just described or is it too early to say yet?

Well, I have listened to it a few more times since my last post.

A lot of people believe that the primary benefit of programs like Centerpointe's is the long term effect it has. So, if you're asking for a comparison in that regard, I really can't say. I'd have to tell you after like 5 years of doing it.

I found the soundtrack to be more than slightly annoying in parts, but now I am getting used to it. Warts and all, I like the soundtrack much better than Centerpointe's. I find Perfect Meditation to provide a similar but more powerful feeling meditational experience.

If you've got the money to spare for the first level, I'd say go ahead and try it out.

I don't think any of these products, however, are worth the prices people are asking for them. They should be sold for at most $16 a CD.

Someone with good audio skills or with access to someone with good audio skills would make a killing from selling a comparable product for $25 per level.

quote:

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Originally posted by InquiringMind:
I think Antonios is complaining about the fact that he cannot sell his original CDs on eBay ...

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No I was trying to buy a higher level than Centerpointe would sell to me.

I tried to make it clear in my post that I believe Centerpointe has the right to include whatever agreement they want in the sale of their products. I fully believe in free market capitalism.

I just choose not to buy any further products because I don't agree with the way they choose to do business.

I KNOW that my CD's (purchased in late 2001/mid 2002)did not include any licensing agreement because I read everything that came with them. If CRI has added this licensing agreement then I see no problem with their action IF that licensing agreement applied to the CD's in question.

Corporations can include whatever paperwork that they like,but the fact of the matter is that it is not legally binding. Once you have bought the product you have the right to resell it at a later date. Duplicating and P2P sharing are obviously illegal. The resale of the original product is not. I do not blame ebay for cooperating with companies who complain about their products being resold,they probably do not need the hassle.
But what next book and music publishers going around charity shops insisting second hand goods being removed from sale!
Incidentally I have had great results from Centerpointe over five years. But I agree that they are way overpriced.