>
>> they claim is eating into sales.
>
>is this true? I remember reading somewhere that record sales were
>actually 'higher' that ever before...
>
According to the http://www.ifpi.org they were only higher in 2
places in 2001: England and France:
Global music sales down 5% in 2001
London, April 16, 2002
London, April 16, 2002 - The global music market fell 5% in value and
6.5 % in units in 2001. Demand for recorded music worldwide is
estimated to have been stronger than ever before, but much of the
fall in sales is attributed to the increased availability of free
music via mass digital copying and the internet.
Recorded music sales worldwide fell to US$33.7 billion. Sales of CD
albums fell globally by 5%, and there were declines in sales of
singles (-16%) and cassettes (-10%). The figures were published today
by IFPI, the organisation representing the recording industry
worldwide.
Commenting on the figures, Jay Berman, Chairman and CEO of IFPI,
said: "In 2001 the international recording industry was caught in a
perfect storm, buffeted by the combined effects of mass copying and
piracy, competition from other products and economic downturn. The
industry's problems reflect no fall in the popularity of recorded
music: rather, they reflect the fact that the commercial value of
music is being widely devalued by mass copying and piracy.
"The record industry is responding. It is developing new business
models, new payment systems and a new legal environment for the
future on-line legitimate business. And it is acting decisively using
anti-copy measures on CDs and internet anti-piracy actions to protect
the business that it depends on today. These measures of
self-protection are essential to stop the widespread erosion of
record producers' and artists' rights".
Two major markets - France (up 10%) and the UK (up 5%) -
significantly bucked the downward trend. Both countries saw
exceptionally robust sales of domestic artists in 2001, which helped
offset the worldwide fall in sales of the biggest international
artists.
Eighteen of the 20 top-selling albums in France carried French
repertoire; in the UK, domestic artists accounted for the top seven
best-selling albums last year.
Three of the world's top five markets - the US, Japan and Germany -
attribute a significant part of their sharp drop in recorded music
sales in 2001 to the proliferation of free music and piracy.
The effect was felt on CD sales, in most of the markets of North
America, Europe, Latin America and Asia. Declines in market value in
2001 ranged from 4.5% in the US and 9.6% in Canada to 9.2% in
Germany, 8.6% in Italy, 9.8% in Austria, 14.8% in Denmark and 9.4% in
Japan. The pressure from mass copying was aggravated in many markets
by the global economic downturn, particular in the last quarter of
the year.
Surveys in the most affected countries, notably the US and Germany,
show that mass copying and internet piracy is directly replacing
sales of CDs. Sales of domestic artists fared well in many major
markets, notably in France, Italy, UK, Spain and Australia. The
average share of national markets accounted for by domestic artists
has risen 1% a year to 68% over the last decade.
In Germany, 18% of 10,000 consumers surveyed said burning CDs
resulted in them buying less music. In the US, nearly 70% of people
who downloaded music burned the songs on to a CD-R disc, while 35% of
people downloading more than 20 songs per month said they now buy
less music as a result.
Three markets with vast populations and among the lowest per capita
music consumption rates in the world - China, Russia and India - saw
encouraging growth in 2001 on the back of economic improvement. Sales
in China grew by 15%; growth in India was 15%, and in Russia 17%.
Many developing markets saw an increase in commercial piracy, driven
by the accelerating spread of organised CD-R pirate operations.
Piracy, combined with economic crises, particularly hit markets in
Latin America. The most dramatic impact on legitimate sales occurred
in the region's two largest markets, Brazil (down 25%) and Mexico
(down 16%). A similar situation exists in parts of Eastern Europe,
with Poland down 28%.
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