An interesting argument over who owns what is going on between Radiohead and Prince that highlights the divide between those who “get” new media and those who don’t.

Prince, who released an album in 1997 on the internet and recieved a Webby award for lifetime achievement seems to have soured on the whole www thing. 

At a recent concert in California, the Artist performed a song by the band Radiohead, who released their most recent album online and invited people to name their own price.

Fans created videos (as fans tend to do) and posted them on YouTube.  A member of Radiohead heard about the performance and wanted to check it out.  He was too late.  The Artist’s record label had demanded that YouTube remove all the clips. 

Thom Yorke of Radiohead isn’t happy about it. Neither are the fans of the Artist formerly known as  (some of whom say they are now former fans).

However, if you pay to use an artist’s song — you gain the right to perform it, don’t you? And then — do you own your performance?

Strange times and interesting questions. But one thing is clear.

The old-school digital immigrant doesn’t speak the language or understand the customs of the new-world digital natives. And there isn’t an old country to go back to.