It’s time to Play fair.

  1. Music is art, not content.

    Creativity should be in the hands of its creators, not those looking to extract or exploit its value.

  2. We believe that co-ops are the future of a more egalitarian internet and society.

    Technology must benefit all involved by weaving communities into thriving, sustainable networks that address the diverse needs of people by providing them with their life essentials. Building a worldwide network of co-operatives is a key part of rejecting the destructive power of Capitalism and Colonialism within our societies, fostering a world built on co-operation, communal control of the commons, and the equality of unequals.

  3. We are the stewards of our artists’ creativity.

    We have a duty of care to the artists, music and other works that we host on Resonate. Our goal is that artists are able to thrive, and that the work entrusted to us is respected and protected.

  4. The music “industry” is broken.

    Its extractive and exploitative hierarchies have never truly served artists. Power has been consolidated in the hands of a small number of technology companies and dominant major labels. We are building a new ecosystem founded on principles of fairness, transparency and co-operation.

  5. Artists should be able to build and maintain sustainable careers on their own terms, without exploitation.

    We should build systems that support and enable their creativity, and human value, and honor their social contributions.

  6. Everyone should own their platform, own their data, and their own network.

    Co-operation and community are key, not marketing schemes for VC-funded Platform Capitalists.

  7. Platforms, technology companies and corporations should not dictate the terms of distribution.

    Artists should retain all ownership and rights, be able to decide what, when and how they make their art available to the public, and the value of their art.

  8. Privacy, inclusivity and ethics are not after-thoughts.

    They must be built-in by design, considered from the start and actively sought at every stage of development.

  9. Culture > Profit.

    Value cannot be reduced to numbers, follower counts, clicks or other metrics. Value is not just measured in public success or monetary worth. Art has a value to society and humanity that cannot be quantified and commodified.

  10. Active engagement in culture should be incentivized over passive consumption.

    Respect for artists should be built by giving them agency, as well as building real community and mutual strength together with their listeners and fans.

  11. We reject the historical basis of property in divine right and human supremacy in ecological relations.

    This “divine right” over property has led to the commodification and extraction of most of the Earth’s life support systems, and also the commodification of human beings. To redress the harms of colonisation, the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, the genocide of Indigenous Peoples, the creation of ‘under-developed peoples,’ persecution of the LGBTQIA+ community and many others, we must engage and align with all dispossessed communities. We realise that these historical harms were fundamental to the expansion and apparent success of Capitalism. By democratising, decentralising, and diversifying economic activity we can lessen consumption, and redistribute resources and power. Co-operation enables us to move forward in mutualism with one another, and this planet, constructing an economy both visionary and life-affirming.