YouGov: Music piracy down among Brits

Illegal music downloading among British people has dropped by 18 percent compared to five years ago, according to a YouGov report.
The YouGov Music Report revealed that one in ten Britons download music illegally, with this number set to decrease.

In its survey, YouGov found that 63 percent of those that illegally download music expecting to be doing so in five years, while 22 percent do not.

YouGov said that 36 percent of those surveyed say that using unverified sources to access music is becoming more difficult.

The report showed that the decrease can be attributed to the increased use of streaming services and 63 percent of those that have stopped illegally downloading music now use streaming services.

One survey participant said that “it is now easier to stream music than to pirate it … and the cost is not prohibitive”, while another said that “Spotify has everything from new releases to old songs, it filled the vacuum, there was no longer a need for using unverified source”.

Of those that continue to download illegally, over half said that they found it frustrating when music was released exclusively through a single platform, and 44 percent said that they only download illegally when they can’t access the music elsewhere.

YouGov said that its research reveals a “change in behaviour, with those that previously attained music by unlawful means now being enticed by the low costs and ease of use associated with streaming”.

“Simply put, many don’t feel they need to go to the same lengths to acquire the music they want, now they have it at their fingertips. Whether or not streaming is what finally banishes illegal downloads remains to be seen, but there are encouraging signs.”

However, according to anti-piracy company MUSO, piracy has actually increased.

MUSO's Global Piracy Report for 2017 showed that global piracy had increased by 1.6 percent from 2016 to 2017.

Christopher Elkins, chief strategy officer at MUSO, commented: "MUSO's data shows that demand for streaming music piracy in the UK is increasing considerably, rising over 21 percent through 2017."

"The YouGov survey indicates more people opting to use streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, but, conversely, our data highlights that there is still a large audience in the UK choosing to use piracy streaming platforms. Piracy remains a significant challenge, but also presents a huge opportunity for the UK music industry to engage these fans in the long term."