Phil Graham on Wed, 21 Jun 2000 02:13:48 +0200 (CEST) |
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[Nettime-bold] Fwd: Norman Lear Center - MP3 Study Release |
>Date: Tue, 20 Jun 2000 16:44:39 -0700 (PDT) >From: latonero <latonero@usc.edu> >To: Phil Graham <phil.graham@mailbox.uq.edu.au> >Subject: Norman Lear Center - MP3 Study Release > >FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: >Contact: Stephen Rivers or Jamie Falkowski >Phone 310.395.2993 > > > >USC Annenberg's Norman Lear Center Study Shows >Music Industry's MP3 Fears May Be Unfounded > >Los Angeles -- A month after the University of Southern California (USC) >banned MP3 downloads from Napster, the Norman Lear Center at the USC >Annenberg School for Communication is releasing a survey of the USC >student body that reveals there is little evidence that use of MP3 >technologies is harmful to either the recording industry or artists. >This survey of USC students adds significant empirical data to the >national debate surrounding Internet music downloads and music file >sharing software. > >"In recent months there has been much concern about piracy of recorded >music on university campuses across the nation, but there has been >little research on how students actually consume MP3s," said Mark >Latonero, principal researcher of the study. "In fact, the findings of >this study on MP3 users contradict many media reports and music industry >fears." > >Key findings in the report demonstrate the following: > >* MP3 is a major new phenomenon in the university population sampled: >69% of all students surveyed say they download MP3s; of these, 68% use >Napster. Seventy percent of MP3 users say they learned about MP3 >technology through close social networks of family and/or friends. > >* Unsurprisingly, there is a strong correlation between MP3 usage and >access to faster Internet connections. > >* MP3 usage among students has not significantly reduced their CD >consumption patterns. Most students (63%) who download MP3s say they >are still buying the same number of CDs; 10% of MP3 users say they are >buying more CDs. What's more, 39% of students who download MP3s say >that after listening to recorded music in MP3 format, they often buy CDs >containing that music. Students also rated CDs higher than MP3s with >respect to sound quality. > >* Sharing music files is a popular activity, but 68% of students sampled >who download MP3s say they have never converted CD music to MP3 format; >70% have never uploaded MP3s to the Internet. > >* Thirty-three percent of students interviewed say their opinion of >Metallica has worsened since the lawsuit. > >* Fifty-four percent of students surveyed disagree with USCís ban on >Napster downloads. > >* Sixty-nine percent of students surveyed agree that copyright holders >should be paid for downloaded MP3s. > > >* Seventy-six percent of respondents say that society is better off with >new technologies such as MP3. > >"The most widely reported reactions to new digital technologies tend to >be at the extremes," said Martin Kaplan, director of the Norman Lear >Center and associate dean of the Annenberg School. "This study offers a >more sophisticated look at the people who use MP3." > >In mid-April, USC, Yale, and Indiana University found themselves named >in a lawsuit filed against Napster by the band Metallica. While Yale >and Indiana banned Napster almost immediately, USC originally held >back. A subsequent decision by university officials to restrict >downloads from Napster resulted in USC being dropped from the lawsuit. > >The full report, which provides data on the attitudes, characteristics, >and practices of this MP3 user community can be found at the Lear >Center's Web site: http://www.entertainment.usc.edu/ > >The Norman Lear Center is a multidisciplinary research and public policy >center exploring implications of the convergence of entertainment, >commerce, and society. The impact of new technology on artists and on >the ownership of creative content is a principal focus of the Lear >Center. > > ##### > > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Opinions expressed in this email are my own unless otherwise stated. Phil Graham Lecturer (Communication) Graduate School of Management University of Queensland 617 3381 1083 www.geocities/pw.graham/ www.uq.edu.au/~uqpgraha http://www.angelfire.com/ga3/philgraham/index.html -------------------------------------------------------------------------- _______________________________________________ Nettime-bold mailing list Nettime-bold@nettime.org http://www.nettime.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nettime-bold