Contrary to what the popular press might have us believe, piracy isn’t killing content. At least, that’s what a team of scholars from the London School of Economics has found after conducting a deep analysis of the situation.
Sure, there are content casualties along the way — the physical music record is doomed, sorry — but there always were. The media business ebbs and flows; things come and go. But the overall picture is, according to the academics, better than many think. Scholars from the London School of Economics explain:
“Contrary to the industry claims, the music industry is not in terminal decline, but still holding ground and showing healthy profits. Revenues from digital sales, subscription services, streaming and live performances compensate for the decline in revenues from the sale of CDs or records…
“Despite the Motion Picture Association of America’s (MPAA) claim that online piracy is devastating the movie industry, Hollywood achieved record-breaking global box office revenues of $US35 billion in 2012, a 6% increase over 2011… The music industry may be stagnating, but the drastic decline in revenues warned of by the lobby associations of record labels is not in evidence.”
You can go read the full report here. It makes surprisingly pleasant reading, all things considered. [LSE via Torrent Freak]