Falling CD sales have prompted the music industry to resume its attack on the internet. It is backed up by growing evidence that the rise in illegal downloading is impacting on artists and record companies.
New data from
PricewaterhouseCoopers reveals that CD shipments in the US fell by 7% in the first half of 2002. This is in addition to the 5.3% drop recorded in the whole of 2001. The study also highlighted the 69.9% increase in counterfeit/pirate CD seizures since the turn of the year.
A recent report by Forrester scotched suggestions that illegal downloading was having a derogatory effect on music sales (see Digital The Way Ahead For Music Business, Says Forrester). A subsequent study by Arbitron and Edison Media Research even claimed that people who regularly accessed streaming media bought more CDs than other consumers (see Streaming Media Encourages Music Sales, Says Report).
This is disputed by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) which cites a survey carried out by Peter D. Hart Research Associates in May this year. Among respondents who said their downloading from file-sharing services had increased in the previous six months, 41% reported purchasing less music than before while only 19% said they were purchasing more music.
While accepting that the fall in US consumer spending had affected most businesses, record industry insiders are convinced that unlicensed downloading is the main reason for declining CD sales. “Cumulatively, this data should dispel any notion that illegal file sharing helps the music industry,” said Cary Sherman, President of the RIAA.
