I doubt they'd be fussed at all about shelling out a few dollars for a good 'listen'. As a writer, I'm not much at risk from widespread plagiarism anyway, I feel. I need the law to make sure I get paid by the company, and, if the company 'steals' an article, the company loses my service. Companies that steal get bad names, no good applicants, and collapse. The law just smooths things I guess.
CDs sell very well.
As do papers. So, the means of production cannot justify the price of the CDs. Many musical artists don't lead extravagent lifestyles. The phenomenally successful do, but most of their money is made from gigs. And that's got little to do with who makes the CDs, but much to do with the artist at hand.