Filesharing plunging

elektro80 · Posted: Wed Jan 07, 2004 4:31 am Post subject: Filesharing plunging

The RIAA Lawsuits Against Online Music File Sharers Appear To Have Had A Devastating Impact

http://www.mi2n.com/press.php3?press_nb=60942

The percentage of online Americans downloading music files on the Internet has dropped by half and the numbers who are downloading files on any given day have plunged since the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) began filing suits in September against those suspected of copyright infringement.

Furthermore, a fifth of those who say they continue to download or share files online say they are doing so less often because of the suits.

A new nationwide phone survey of 1,358 Internet users from November 18-December 14 by the Pew Internet & American Life Project showed that the percentage of music file downloaders had fallen to 14% (about 18 million users) from 29% (about 35 million) when the Project last reported on downloading from a survey conducted during March 12-19 and April 29-May 20.

"The record industry law suits have been a watershed event in American culture, so we naturally wanted to see how they might have affected people's behavior" said Mary Madden, a Research Specialist at the Pew Internet Project who co-authored the new study. "While some people may simply be less likely to admit to downloading now, we have never seen an Internet activity drop off this dramatically. And the comScore data confirm that something significant has happened."

The data from comScore Media Metrix, based on the company's continuously measured consumer panel, show significant declines in the number of people with peer-to-peer file sharing applications running on their computers. The declines in the user base of each of these applications from November 2002 to November 2003 were: 15% for KaZaa, 25% for WinMX, 9% for BearShare, and 59% for Grokster.
Conversely, comScore has observed that in recent months a growing number of consumers have turned to a new generation of paid online music services. In November 2003, 3.2 million Americans visited Napster.com, which re-launched as a paid online music service in late October. Apple's iTunes, which expanded to serve Windows-based PC users in mid-October, drew 2.7 million such visitors in November.

While multiple factors may have contributed to the decline, every nook of the music downloading world has been affected, including the parts of the population that were the most prolific users of online file-sharing networks. Steep drops in downloading were recorded among students, broadband users, young adults (those ages 18-29) and Internet veterans.

mosc · Posted: Wed Jan 07, 2004 7:39 am Post subject:

Victory thought intimidation. Works for gangsters, Nazis and the RIAA.

elektro80 · Posted: Wed Jan 07, 2004 7:47 am Post subject:

Not exactly what I think you guys consider the american way. But.. we are living in the age of fear now..

nothing happens · Posted: Wed Jan 07, 2004 9:52 am Post subject:

I don't necessarily attribute it to the lawsuits. Filesharing was this cool new thing a few years ago and everyone just had to try it. I think its novelty is simply fading and the majority of people figured out they can hear most of the popular mainstream music that most people like in other ways more easily, like by turning on the radio. Which is fine, it gets rid of some of the people who fileshared Britney Spears crap ad nauiseam and leaves room for us actual music enthusiasts to find the older and more underground stuff.

Cyxeris · Joined: Oct 30, 2003 Posts: 1125 Location: Louisville, KY

Maybe everyone downloaded everything they want. Goodness knows I have for the most part, at least with regards to music. Wink

Cyx

elektro80 · Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2004 1:25 am Post subject:

Cyxeris · Joined: Oct 30, 2003 Posts: 1125 Location: Louisville, KY

It isn't going away, that's for sure. I just hope it's still widely used [Kazaa in this instance] when my CD is done, as I intend to dump the entire album on Kazaa and the like. It's going to end up there anyway (hopefully). I might as well A. enjoy some quality control, and B. benefit from it's strengths (file sharing) as much as possible.

I have a personal stake in the continuation of p2p FS. My tactics are partially dependent on that outlet. Blah. And fnord, by the way.

Cyx

Cyxeris · Joined: Oct 30, 2003 Posts: 1125 Location: Louisville, KY

Report: Illegal Music Downloading Climbs
Thu Jan 15, 7:24 PM ET

By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer

LOS ANGELES - The number of people downloading music illegally surged a month after recording companies began suing hundreds of music fans, a marketing research firm said Thursday.

The number of U.S. households downloading music from peer-to-peer networks rose 6 percent in October and 7 percent in November after a six-month decline, according to a study of computer use in 10,000 U.S. households conducted by The NPD Group.

In a separate, bimonthly survey, 12 million individuals reported getting music on the free networks in November, up from 11 million in September, NPD said.

Previous surveys dating back to May — when 20 million people said they were downloading music from file-sharing networks — showed a steady decline in the number of file-sharers.

Russ Crupnick, vice president of The NPD Group, speculated the apparent increase in music file-sharing could merely be seasonal, as new album releases before the holidays heightened demand. He also said less media coverage of the recording industry's lawsuit campaign could have figured into the increase.

The Recording Industry Association of America has filed more than 380 copyright infringement lawsuits against individuals across the country since September and reached settlements for thousands of dollars with hundreds of individuals since.

Consumers might also have been tapping into the free networks to compare how they sized up to the new crop of legal digital music services, Crupnick said.

"It's important to keep in mind that file sharing is occurring less frequently than before the RIAA began its legal efforts to stem the tide of P2P file sharing," Crupnick said. "We're just seeing the first increase in these numbers."

Jonathan Lamy, a spokesman for the Washington-based RIAA, which coordinates the industry's anti-piracy campaign, said that effort is on the right track, regardless of what the NPD studies show.

"For us, the ultimate measurement of success has been, and continues to be, creating an environment where legal online music services can flourish," Lamy said in a statement. "All indicators point in the right direction — sales of CDs, legal downloads and awareness that file sharing copyrighted music is illegal — have all increased."

More RIAA lawsuits against file-sharers are coming, he added.

NPD's household data sample is representative of all U.S. households and has a margin of error of plus or minus 0.5 percent, NPD spokesman Lee Graham said. The firm's bimonthly survey is based on 5,000 respondents, age 13 or older, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1 percent, Port Washington, N.Y.-based NPD said.

Recent studies of online music piracy, which the recording industry largely blames for a four-year slide in overall music sales, haven't always shown the same upward trend in file-sharing.

A survey released earlier this month by the Pew Internet & American Life Project and comScore Media Metrix found that since May, the percentage of U.S. Internet users who download music was down by half, to 14 percent. The same report also found declines in usage of popular file-sharing programs such as Kazaa and Grokster.

But NPD's findings mirror data from other file-sharing tracking firms, such as BigChampagne LLC, which says traffic on file-swapping networks like FastTrack and Gnutella has continued to rise.

elektro80 · Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2004 4:44 am Post subject:

Yes, filesharing will increase.

But people are buying DVDs and music CDs for gift for XMAS and such in record breaking quantities anyway.

All human beings love to own stuff. I propose the idea that there is a big potential in making the actual physical object.. the CD and DVD a better product. This can be like improvements to the actual packaging etc.

The way the big labels have marketed the music the last decades has created a state of instant consumption. If you hear the music on the radio and wherever you are.. in cafes and whatnot.. why buy the damn CD if the music is not more than fairky OK and you know you will be fed up with the songs by the end of next week? And then the big labels will bombard you with the same songs for months until you puke.. man.. ! ..and if you DID buy the CD.. you feel more like giving the damned thing away.. And there is always new music being released. These are commodities.. for instant consumption. Back in the old days.. sure.. we copied all the LPs onto reel to reel tape.. often with low tape speeds in order to stuff more LPs onto that expensive tape. And we often copied onto reel to reel tape anyway in order to save the actual LP from scratches and shit. But anyway.. if you coud dig Coltrane, or VDGG, or Jethro Tull or you name it.. you had to buy the stuff eventually. It felt right and satisfying to own the stuff. "This is what I like.. and it is MINE!"

What we need now is a new drive at building artists long term. Pop has eaten itself long ago.

seraph · Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2004 5:00 am Post subject:

I remember the joy of having a new LP in my hands. Reading the notes while listening to the music. It was a fetishistic item much more than a CD. I kept the more precious ones enveloped in plastic envelopes. I was always very careful with the needle of the turntable. Very seldom I did lend LPs to friends (usually I copied them on tape) Very Happy