Most musicians benefit from piracy
Over the past three years at least five detailed studies of the impact of P2P networks on the music industry in general and on the profits of musicians, in particular, have been conducted. Here are the main theses with links to sources .
The main thesis is that obscure music groups only benefit if their work is distributed free of charge on the Internet, be it file sharing networks or social music services such as Last.fm and Pandora . Moreover, the less well-known musician, the greater the benefits he receives from the "free PR". In principle, this was already so obvious, but now this thesis has been proven scientifically.
The most complete picture of the influence of P2P on CD sales is given in Oberholzer and Strumpf's “File Sharing Effect on Record Sales and Empirical Analysis” ( PDF ).
The graph shows the dependence between the number of downloads of files by a popular artist from file-sharing networks (red) and the corresponding number of sales of his album (blue) for the same periods of time.
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As you can see, the graphics of the superstar album move almost synchronously. The number of downloads is almost equal to the circulation of CDs, and from the 15th week the discrepancy begins: the number of downloads decreases, and the number of album sales grows.
The picture of the distribution of music of a little-known group is completely different. The surge in popularity of music among pirates is causing a rise in CD sales. As in the case of the "star", the effect most clearly manifests itself from the 15th week of sales.
As shown by another study conducted at Harvard ( PDF ), about 75% of all musicians belong to the category of authors and performers who benefit from piracy. Similar conclusions were obtained by Danish colleagues, who analyzed the amount of royalties paid to musicians in 2001–2005. The graph shows that during this time low-paid musicians began to earn more, and the "stars" fees decreased by 17%.
But, since the “stars” total album circulations more than all the other musicians combined, then the total sales of CDs in the world are also declining, and record companies lose profits. For this reason, the RIAA and others make such a noise. The graph, published by Danish researchers, shows that the number of CDs sold in Denmark began to decline sharply in 2001, and this process continues to this day.
The same picture is observed not only in Denmark, but also in other countries where file sharing networks are very popular. The map below shows which countries the users of P2P programs live in (by the number of logins). This is mainly America and Western Europe.
It is here, in the United States and Western Europe, that record labels lose most of their profits, while in “gray” countries, which include all CIS countries, sales of music CDs and RIAA profits may even grow.
One way or another, but thanks to the Internet, the music industry has clearly received a new impetus to development. There are unique social services, through which students can analyze their own musical tastes and find for themselves new performers. The Internet and social networks have become a platform where talents will be noticed. Unnecessary at this celebration of life are only music labels that frantically search for a way out of the crisis .
The main thesis is that obscure music groups only benefit if their work is distributed free of charge on the Internet, be it file sharing networks or social music services such as Last.fm and Pandora . Moreover, the less well-known musician, the greater the benefits he receives from the "free PR". In principle, this was already so obvious, but now this thesis has been proven scientifically.
The most complete picture of the influence of P2P on CD sales is given in Oberholzer and Strumpf's “File Sharing Effect on Record Sales and Empirical Analysis” ( PDF ).
The graph shows the dependence between the number of downloads of files by a popular artist from file-sharing networks (red) and the corresponding number of sales of his album (blue) for the same periods of time.
')
As you can see, the graphics of the superstar album move almost synchronously. The number of downloads is almost equal to the circulation of CDs, and from the 15th week the discrepancy begins: the number of downloads decreases, and the number of album sales grows.
The picture of the distribution of music of a little-known group is completely different. The surge in popularity of music among pirates is causing a rise in CD sales. As in the case of the "star", the effect most clearly manifests itself from the 15th week of sales.
As shown by another study conducted at Harvard ( PDF ), about 75% of all musicians belong to the category of authors and performers who benefit from piracy. Similar conclusions were obtained by Danish colleagues, who analyzed the amount of royalties paid to musicians in 2001–2005. The graph shows that during this time low-paid musicians began to earn more, and the "stars" fees decreased by 17%.
But, since the “stars” total album circulations more than all the other musicians combined, then the total sales of CDs in the world are also declining, and record companies lose profits. For this reason, the RIAA and others make such a noise. The graph, published by Danish researchers, shows that the number of CDs sold in Denmark began to decline sharply in 2001, and this process continues to this day.
The same picture is observed not only in Denmark, but also in other countries where file sharing networks are very popular. The map below shows which countries the users of P2P programs live in (by the number of logins). This is mainly America and Western Europe.
It is here, in the United States and Western Europe, that record labels lose most of their profits, while in “gray” countries, which include all CIS countries, sales of music CDs and RIAA profits may even grow.
One way or another, but thanks to the Internet, the music industry has clearly received a new impetus to development. There are unique social services, through which students can analyze their own musical tastes and find for themselves new performers. The Internet and social networks have become a platform where talents will be noticed. Unnecessary at this celebration of life are only music labels that frantically search for a way out of the crisis .
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/4866/
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