60% Of People Download Free Music

Sites include lab42.com , Spotify.com . Published on August 28th, 2012. Written by Anthony West.

The latest set of data on how we access our music may not be good reading for record label executives.

According to Lab42, more than 60% of people download free music. With 45% of people listening to 10 hours or more of music each week, this amounts to a massive chunk of lost revenue. The likes of Pandora and Spotify both have premium offerings but the study conducted by Lab42 found that only 20% of people are willing to shell out money for premium access.

There was one bright spot among the study though; it turns out that 70% of people do pay to download music. But these are people who traditionally have paid for music. iTunes account holders fall into this category and many would argue that strong DRM protection on some devices have helped keep these people loyal.

The new data will no doubt reignite calls for more stringent protection and enforcement of copyright laws. Record companies have been lobbying massively in the last few years and the recently pushed-back PIPA legislation was one weapon aimed at fighting online piracy and free music downloads.

Online music hubs like Spotify and Pandora will no doubt have a huge role to play in regulating music consumption online. Whether they’ll be able to retain loyalty among users whilst at the same slanting towards more paid services is another matter. Only time will tell.

Do you download free music? Let us know in the comments below (we won’t tell on you—promise)