Contrary to charges that Internet song-swapping is killing the music industry, new Jupiter Media Metrix research contends that experienced online song-swappers are more likely to buy new albums than average music fans, not less. ... "The boost outweighs the bust." The industry blames "mass copying and Internet piracy." ... The music industry has grown more reliant on a few smash hit records to generate much of its profit. [So has the film industry.]

Another pointless "study" that just happens to serve the interests of those who commissioned it. People throw around percentages to prove "facts" that "explain" the situation. Why don't book publishers complain about the sales of printers and blank paper? Do we have a "piracy tax" on 8.5"x11" copy paper? Question: do writers for the New York Times feel cheated by the fact that anyone can read their stories "for free" online? Does a year's worth of a columnist's writings represent less personal effort than an album that an artist spent a year to produce?