On the Canadian Recording Industry Association's web page, you'll find some run of the mill, apocalyptic anti-file sharing headlines that comes off as even more alarmist than the American variety of this propaganda. But according to Michael Geist, a 144 page CRIA-commissioned study on the allegedly pernicious problem of peer-to-peer piracy contradicts the chiseled-in-stone industry notion that file sharing is the prime cause of all of society's ills.
Geist recaps the hottest highlights of the study's Appendix 1, and in it there's a whole lot of stuff that's pretty much intuitive - in that common sense, well-reasoned empirical sort of way that's been hip since the Enlightenment, and that the anti-art, anti-technology folk usually dispense with before making an argument. Those of you who actually listen to music, prepare to do some head-thunking:
* The survey asked for the sources of music on people's computers. Among those who download music from P2P services, the top source of music was ripping copies of their own CDs (36.4%), followed by P2P downloads (32.6%), paid downloads (20.1%), shared music from friends (8.8%), downloads from artist sites (5.6%), and other sources (2.9%). In other words, even among those who download music from P2P services, the music acquired on those services account for only one-third of the music on their computers as store-bought CDs remain the single largest source of music for downloaders (page 53). * For all the emphasis on the teenage downloaders, it is interesting that the 35 to 44 age group had the largest spread between CDs and P2P as the source of music. Among that demographic, 31 percent of their music comes from P2P services and 27 percent from ripping their own CDs (page 69). * Consistent with many other studies, people who download music from P2P services frequently buy that same music. The study found that only 25% of respondents said they never bought music after listening to it as a P2P downloaded track. That obviously leaves nearly 75% as future purchasers, including 21% who have bought music ten times or more. Note that demographically, the lowest percentage of non-buyers actually belonged to the 13 to 17 year old demographic (page 70). * The 13 to 17 year old demographic also happens to be the largest purchasing group of music, buying an average of 11.6 music CDs or DVDs in the past six months. Close behind are the 18 to 24 age group at 10.9 music CDs or DVDs. By comparison, the older demographics may not download much music but they don't buy much either. The 55 - 64 age group bought 4.2 music CDs or DVDs, while the 65 and up age group bought 2.8 music CDs or DVDs (page 92). * As for music buying trends, the study also asked whether purchasing patterns had increased or decreased over the previous year. The data was inconclusive with 28% buying more, 35% buying less, and 37% saying they didn't know (page 93). * More interestingly, the survey also asked why people bought less. Only 10% of respondents cited the availability of music downloads. Instead, people cited a long list of alternatives that have nothing to do with downloading including price (16%), nothing of interest (14%), lack of time (13%), collection is big enough (9%), don't buy (7%), listen to radio (7%), change in tastes (6%), no CD player (3%), have an MP3 player (2%), lack of opportunity to buy (2%), watch more tv (2%), age (1%), only buy what I like (1%). Simply put, P2P simply is not a major factor behind decisions to buy less music (page 95).
So you're telling me it took the CRIA paying someone to do a "study report" to come up with 144 pages of that? Where do I sign up for that job? But I digress. It's long been one mantra of the file-sharing community that people download to discover new music that they want to buy and to have music that they wouldn't buy in the first place. This is the mantra because it's true, it's completely true, and it's now backed up by this 144 page study.
Other elements of note in the portion of the study mentioned: the attempt to smear file-sharers and people with any real interest in issues of digital rights as spoiled, selfish high school and college kids with desperately flawed moral compasses who have no problem screwing hard working artists out of money is disproven by the statistics. It looks like 13-17 year olds are the biggest downloaders as well as the biggest music purchasers, and that people in their 40's and 50's are less likely to buy the music that they download.
So there it is - another study that shows how file-sharing is about consumer choice and an appreciation for art rather than what the major labels and their greedy, hose-the-artist business models and propoganda blitz's would have you believe. The CRIA hasn't been hyping this study, though - are you surprised? What does a company do when their own study exposes their "sky is falling" rhetoric as a pack of lies?
