- NEW YORK (Reuters)
- Compact disc shipments fell 7 percent in the first six months of this
year versus last year as growing use of Internet downloading services undermined
sales, the record industry said Monday.
-
- The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA),
which represents the world's largest record labels, issued a study by Peter
D. Hart Research Associates indicating that Internet users who say they
are downloading more music also said they were purchasing fewer albums.
-
- "Among people who said their downloading from file-sharing
services had increased over the past six months, 41 percent reported purchasing
less music now than six months ago, compared to only 19 percent who said
they were purchasing more music," the RIAA said in a statement.
-
- The record industry successfully defeated the first popular
file-serving service Napster, which a court ruled violated copyright law
by offering the ability to share digital music. Since then several similar
services such as Kazaa and Morpheus have cropped up.
-
- Earlier this month, Forrester Research issued a study
saying piracy was not to blame for the sharp decline in record sales. Its
study discovered no evidence of decreased CD buying among frequent digital
music consumers, noting that the general economy and competition from other
media were larger factors.
-
- "I would not argue that downloading and copying
are the only factors at work," Geoff Garin, chief executive of Hart
Research said. "But we have clear evidence that downloading and copying
do not have a favorable effect on record sales."
-
- Jonathan Potter, executive director of Digital Media
Association, a lobbying group that represents many music sites trying to
promote and sell music over the Internet, said such surveys were of little
value.
-
- "The way to defeat illegal music distribution services
is to offer comprehensive, innovative, fairly priced legal services,"
Potter said. "Until the record companies offer their content ubiquitously
in a consumer friendly way, studies like this are useless."
-
- The five major record labels -- Sony Music, AOL Time
Warner Inc.'s Warner Music Group, EMI Group Plc, Vivendi Universal's Universal
Music Group, Bertelsmann AG's BMG Entertainment -- and other companies
are trying to trying to win users over to subscription-based services.
But none have reached the mass appeal enjoyed by the unauthorized services.
-
- Garin said the survey tried to get an understanding of
what would inspire consumers to abandon the free file-sharing services,
although the results were not made public.
-
- "We do know that consumers don't have a very high
recognition of what the alternatives to the free services are," Garin
said. But he added that subscription services will find it difficult to
compete with free services.
-
- Potter remained unconvinced. "I'd like to introduce
the recording industry to something called bottled water," he said,
referring to an example of successful retail items that are also easily
available for free.
-
- "The point is if there were a high quality product
that was affordable and available across multiple services, they would
be able to defeat the free services," he said.
-
- The RIAA's survey is based on 860 music consumers with
Internet access between the ages of 12 and 54.
-
- The survey also found that the number pirated compact
discs acquired by Internet users has doubled from a year ago. Asked when
they hear a song they like by an unfamiliar artist, 20 percent of the respondents
said they would download the song for free, while 14 percent said they
would buy the album.
-
- For respondents between 12 and 18 years of age, 35 percent
said they would download the song for free, while 10 percent said they
would buy the album.
-
- Reuters/Variety
-
- © Copyright Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved. The
information contained In this news report may not be published, broadcast
or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of Reuters
Ltd.
-
- Comment
-
- From Noel Murphy
8-27-2
-
- Hi Jeff,
-
- A weight needs to be lifted off my shoulders. This weight
may make some noise in the key of F words.
-
- I've been in musical turmoil now for about 5 years or
more. Can you, too, remember the time when there was a special, favorite
band to your discerning ear that made you proud to hear a 'b side' song
playing on the radio?
-
- Being a guitar enthusiast since my childhood, sounds
from the guitars of axe-slingers George Lynch, Slash, Eddie VH, etc STILL
raise the hairs on my arms literally. However, these artists have somewhat
halted their contribution to the 'hit' markets, but by NO fault of their
own...
-
- I find myself floating around in a musical limbo, filled
with grotesquely synthesized, recycled cR*P, bubble gum marketing musical
machines & 'all sing, all dance' boy / girl bands.
-
- Look at the credits of 75% of this cR*P. do just one
of the 20 names on the credits match even ONE performer in the band? The
piracy statistics come from the boardroom as do the artists.
-
- Picture a 30 member board, passing pictures around. You
have the 'talent' scouts there who no longer listen to an original band
perform their own stuff in a smokey club. Instead they listen to 'dj byob
& the mixer's entourage' doing a rendition of a classic popular song
or anthem only after looking at the picture of each member while deciding
who needs 'presentation training (modeling school) & voice lessons
(development of an actual talent in the event someone actually buys tickets
to see these people LIVE).
-
- This, my friends, is how it's done today.
-
- An exec goes to a hotel bar, sees a VERY attractive person
& approaches with 'Hey... Can you sing? Ever do any acting? No? Well...
Can we talk?' Like the roaming snake oil salesman that he is, he packages
his product for the boardroom sales meetings. Next week, we hear a song
by 'misty blue jeans & the hotel bar hangover chicks from 90218'. The
woman no longer works at the hotel bar.
-
- The statistics coming from these PRODUCTLESS companies
is HOGWASH! the '7 percent decline' is more like the decline in interest
from the brainless purchasers of such cR*P.
-
- This is not prophecy, but FACT... Record companies listen
up! At LEAST 2 of you MAJOR labels are going to stock hell this year. YES...
Bankruptcy, deservedly so, too.
-
- A day at the board room ---
-
- 'Hi JohnDoe... Whatcha got for us today?', says the authoritative
ceo of ^%$&#@ (Music, INC).
-
- 'Haha! I have something you will all like..... Look at
these!', JohnDoe says with a Mommy-look-what-I-can-do-enthusiasm.
-
- 'Oh Nice! Can they sing?', the authority inquires.
-
- JohnDoe sighs & shrugs while saying, 'These two can't,
these three can allthough they arent that pretty.'
-
- 'Ok... Jimmy, take these three out to the 'visual character
development' guys & let them take care of this little problem...
-
- Give them a budget of $15,000 for surgical improvments
each STAT!'
-
- 'Yes your CEOness, we will get right on it. Give me 3
days.' says the corporate nobody while tripping up over the 'audio characteristic
development officers'.
-
- 'Alright then, A.C.D.O. #2, I want you & #4 to take
these other two down to the 'audio charateristic impressioning center'
& get these two singing like songbirds... STAT!' Says CEOness minime.
-
- *3 days pass.*
-
- 'Ok people... let's see what we got.... GREAT JOB...
Now let's get them some musicians & songs.', says the authoritative
CEO #2, maxime & then continues with more babble while thinking angry
anti-napster thoughts, ' Ok... Jimmybobby, Those three tunes your people
put together yesterday using those samples of elvis, the doors & slayer...
Give those to these ladies PRONTO & finally we will have the best soda
stars on the planet ready for the last week in Q2.', the CEO says while
thoughts of a nice yacht passes through his well developed rodent like
brain.
-
- *3rd last week in Q2 arrives*
-
- 'Great job folks, sales are up 13% this week. You can
dispose of stock #345123 now.' CEOness says while the 'forced retirement
consultants & unauthorized biography people move in to take stock #345123
off the board of directors for &%#*&^$ Music, INC's hands...
-
- Fly on the wall Observation: Another REAL band dies.
Book deals are rumored. Movies are in planning.
-
- Don't you think it's time for some *REAL* NEW talent
to come back out & melt our hearts, ears & wallets? There is maybe
7% of the market with the REAL & THE NEW this year...
-
- YES... I listen to & enjoy SOME techno, cR*P, copy
/ paste rock & heavy metal, but with a HELL of a lot more than a measely
7% drop in interest than last year!!!
-
- Oh wow! our new 'Two Trailer park gurls go round the.......'
station is playing a new song! Perhaps I should go buy that? Nahhhh! I
can count on that being ALL OVER THE radio for the next 14 months.
-
-
- Remixed Regards in the key of VH, Clapton, GnR, Kiss,
Leonard Cohen, & other mentionworthy acts,
-
- Noel in Newfoundland
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