It’s 2018, and music streaming is in and piracy is out.
According to a new report, music piracy is experiencing a fallout as streaming services like Apple Music and Spotify become the new norm. It’s encouraging news for the music industry, which took a huge hit due to the influx of piracy back in the 2000s.
YouGov‘s Music Report found that in the UK, only 1 in 10 people admitted to using illegal downloads this year, down 18% from 2013. Among those surveyed by YouGov, 22% of those who get music illegitimately said they don’t expect to be doing so in five years. On top of that, 44% of respondents said they only download songs illegally when they can’t find them elsewhere.
The reasoning behind this change is simple — “It is now easier to stream music than to pirate it,” one participant said.
Per this discussion, YouGov surveyed 4,009 UK adults between March 6-13 of this year. It should be noted, results could be skewed out of fear of admitting to this shamed practice.
Piracy-tracking company MUSO came up with entirely different results. That report found 300 billion visits to piracy sites in 2017 alone, up 1.6%. MUSO also concluded music piracy rose 14.7% overall in the UK.
The battle is not over. Before, it was critical that the music industry shut down file sharing services like Napster (a company which has since morphed into its own music streaming service). Now, the attention of record labels has shifted to “stream ripping” services, where the current problem lies.
Future of Illegal Downloading
YouGov’s Music Report reveals that the number of Brits illegally downloading music is decreasing – 10% say they do so now, down from 18% five years ago. A further 22% of those that do download illegally now don't expect to be doing so in five years time https://t.co/kHZiyqzmTn pic.twitter.com/Ek4lF1Fh0V
— YouGov (@YouGov) August 2, 2018