The number of music lovers accessing illegal content decreased by two percent in 2016/17, according to new Intellectual Property Office (IPO) figures.

A report published by the IPO showed that UK consumers of illegal online content, including music, decreased from nine percent in 2016 to seven percent in 2016/17.

Meanwhile, the proportion of those who consumed music legally remained stable at 75 percent.

The figures were taken from the seventh Online Copyright Infringement Tracker (OCI), a large scale consumer study which assesses the extent of online infringement each year.

Elsewhere in the report, the IPO confirmed its continued action in China to promote copyright best-practice, stating: ‘We continue to lead international efforts to increase royalties paid by Chinese broadcasters for music, with a seminar in Beijing implementing an outcome from the UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) last November.’