The Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) claimed music sales were hit adversely by online and offline piracy, although put more weight on 'one-off events' such as the Sydney Olympics, the introduction of the GST and the destruction of the World Trade Centre.
In contrast, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) claims online piracy is the number one factor resulting in the reported drop of 6.4 percent in full-length CD units in the US for 2001.
-A large factor contributing to the decrease in overall shipments last year is online piracy and CD-burning," Hilary Rosen, president and CEO of the RIAA, said in a statement. -When 23 percent of surveyed music consumers say they are not buying more music because they are downloading or copying their music for free, we cannot ignore the impact on the marketplace."
RIAA have been complaining about online piracy since 1999, despite the figures for 1999 and 2000 showing an increase in CD sales.
The sale of full-length CDs consists of almost 90 percent of total dollar sales, and increased by over AU$44.5 million. The largest percentage increases came from DVDs and Mini Disks.
The record industry increased sales yet still complain? Talk about greedy! How many Billions do you reckon these companies make a year? How much of that do you think the artists who make the music get?
Ridiculous! Maybe if they considered we know how much CDrs cost and how much the artist recieves in Royalties (only a couple of bucks per CD) yet we are charged >$30.. What happened to the deregulation of the Aussie CD market. I remember being promised $15 cds! If these companies sold CD's at a reasonable price, say $10 - $15 each, they would literally see sales go thru the roof. I will only buy a CD if I think it is worth it, translate; I have bought 3 cd's in 2 years. Wake up ARIA! We aren't stupid....