A report published by the European Commission Joint Research COMMITTEE claims that music web piracy does not harm legitimate sales.

The Institute for Prospective TECHNOLOGICAL Studies examined the online habits of 16,000 Europeans.

They also found that freely streamed music provided a small boost to sales figures.

The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) said the research was "flawed and misleading".

"It seems that the majority of the music that is consumed illegally by the individuals in our sample would not have been purchased if illegal downloading websites were not available to them," wrote the researchers in their report, Digital Music Consumption on the Internet: Evidence from Clickstream Data.

"Although there is trespassing of private property rights (copyrights), there is unlikely to be much harm done on digital music revenues," they added.

Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21856720 Quote from: Mulreay on March 20, 2013, 03:01:42 PM

"It seems that the majority of the music that is consumed illegally by the individuals in our sample would not have been purchased if illegal downloading websites were not available to them," wrote the researchers in their report, Digital Music Consumption on the Internet: Evidence from Clickstream Data.

"Although there is trespassing of private property rights (copyrights), there is unlikely to be much harm done on digital music revenues," they added.

Would anyone like to suggest that piracy, to a degree, promotes sales of copyrighted music?
Consider: For many years radio stations received 'free' copies of new releases to play on the air as promotional material. But nowadays in many plates rite radio is no longer the place to hear new music. People hear it over the internet. How can you decide you like a song by herring  20second sample? Like on Amazon.

"If a large proportion of illegal downloaders do not buy any music (and yet consume, in some cases, large amounts of it), it cannot be logical that illegal behaviour stimulates legal download sales and inflicts no harm."

If there are people who will download a free copy of a song and then buy it if they like it, I have yet to meet them.

This is how i've been buying my music for years...

If there are people who will download a free copy of a song and then buy it if they like it, I have yet to meet them.

Would anyone like to suggest that piracy, to a degree, promotes sales of copyrighted music?
Consider: For many years radio stations received 'free' copies of new releases to play on the air as promotional material. But nowadays in many plates rite radio is no longer the place to hear new music. People hear it over the internet. How can you decide you like a song by herring  20second sample? Like on Amazon.