Legal Music Downloads At 35%, Soon To Pass Piracy

bonch writes "Entertainment Media Research released a study stating that 35% of music listeners are using legal download services, and that the percentage will soon surpass illegal downloads, currently at 40%. Slashdot has also previously reported on services like iTunes gaining in popularity over P2P services. "The findings indicate that the music industry is approaching a strategic milestone with the population of legal downloaders close to exceeding that of pirates," said Entertainment Media Research chief executive Russell Hart.'"

Sure...

[Anonymous Coward]

But will the RIAA/MPAA stop bitching?

Re:something's not adding up

[MasamuneXGP]

Apperently they have these things called "stores" that you can reach on sneakernet. Psh, it'll never catch on.

I think the tide turned...

[Japong]

... when Britney Spears appeared in those television ads telling me how wrong piracy was, and how it was stealing from artists like her.

I mean: "We hit a little bit of reality, hardcore, after the first three weeks. But we handled it fine, and now things are starting to go really smooth. Before we got married we were on tour, and we were just like kids, ordering room service, saying, 'Let's go out tonight. Then, all of a sudden, you have this home, you have the kids [Federline's children Kaleb and Kori], you have to get the diapers, get the dog to the vet. It's this reality. Like omigod, I have to tell the maid to buy diapers and get the pool boy to walk the dog? Can't I just make out with Kevin all the time? Being married sucks."

Poor girl... thank god the RIAA kept after the pirates who tried to rob her of her livelihood.

Seriously though, good to hear that online music is working, but it still sucks that 60% of that goes to RIAA liscensing levies.

Re:something's not adding up

[weighn]

TFA doesn't make this clear. Can a download be neither legal or illegal? Perhaps, in the way they collected the data, they couldn't tell if these were breaking any copyright law. Probably, under the DCMA, these 25% are just terrorists anyway.

Oh my god!

[da3dAlus]

You mean actually EMBRACING new technology that everyone is using, is actually BENEFICIAL? Wow, that is such a novel idea!
</sarcasm>

Fuzzy math...

[Hamster Lover]

Maybe this should have been a Slashdot poll. 35% download legally, 40% download illegally and 25%:

- Rip from CD
- Breasts!
- Mentally reconstruct the music by "reading"
the grooves on an LP
- Record off the radio
- Rely on the voices in their head for all their entertainment
- Cowboy Neal

Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics.

[Anonymous Coward]

These stats are brought to you by the same people that make up benchmarking numbers and voodoo economics.

Lies, damned lies, and statistics all.

Every time we hit a milestone like this...

[Narcocide]

... the entire RIAA should be dragged out into the streets and paraded through town so we can jeer and throw rotten vegetables at them.

In fact, they should make a national holiday out of it. There can be a big parade... and thousands of vendors selling rotten vegetables. Yea. That's exactly how I dreamt it.

Re:so?

[tomhudson]

so what's the other 25%?

... people with Britney Spears on their hard drives - they won't admit to it, legal or otherwise.

Re:something's not adding up

[aklix]

It's actually 42%, they just won't admit it. Never be known the reasons will.

Re:Is Anyone Actually Being Honest

[tomhudson]

DO YOU Honestly think people are being honest? With all the recent lawsuits, people are becoming less and less open about downloading. From the people I know, few would admit to downloads, but would do it anyways.

They offered them chocolate (hey, it works for passwords)

Re:Music LISTENERS not DOWNLOADERS

[vwjeff]

So I don't know how those are accounted for.

It doesn't matter. 101% of all statistics are pulled out of someone's ass. That is a fact because it sounds right.

Consumer

[Joey Patterson]

Time to stop paying $4 a song and start pirating music again!

Re:Sure...

[BlackMesaLabs]

Short answer; yes, with an if. Long answer; no, with a but.

Another option?

[BlackMesaLabs]

Why, In Soviet Russia, music downloads YOU!

Com'on you guys

[sambira]

Com'on illegal downloaders. We can't let the legal downloaders win. :(

Re:so?

[RichardX]

I'd be quite happy to have Britney Spears on my harddrive!

Oh, wait, you mean her music..

Re:Bah..

[vertinox]

On average I probably buy around one bar of candy a week. If it was free (that's what pirated music is about, right?), I bet I'd eat more.

If candy dars are priated music, then you'd wouldn't be able to find them in a store and you'd have to spend 30 minutes looking for one (like searching multiple networks for an obscure song) and once you found one it takes forever dig through the trash to get it (the only person you found with the song is on dial up) and then when you finish getting the candy part you find that its not only not all there but tastes like poop (the song cuts off at the end and was encoded at 96kps argh!).

Re:Music LISTENERS not DOWNLOADERS

[Bastian]

I think if we accounted for each, the numbers would be something along the lines of:

70% download ilegally
90% download legally
100% rip CDs legally
100% copy friends' ripped CDs ilegally
1,536% think statisticians do lead paint shots when nobody's looking.

Re:Sure...

[Anonymous Coward]

>>> short_answer="yes, with an if."
>>> long_answer="no, with a but."
>>> len(short_answer)
16
>>> len(long_answer)
15