Music download

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A music download is a song or album available for downloading on the Internet. Downloading music first became popular with file sharing technologies such as peer-to-peer networks, with people breaking copyright laws by not paying for any of it. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) claimed that this practice was hurting the music industry, and a series of law suits led to many of these networks being closed down. However, those who support such technologies argue that the music industry said the same thing about recordable tapes and CDs, and even when recorded music came out as before then artists got their money through live performance, and that the industry should adapt to the advancements in technology rather than panicking and sueing select individuals. Very little publishable academic research has been done to clarify this form of massive consumer behavior.

There is a great deal of freely available music online, which is distributed by the copyright holders for various reasons. (For instance, some university orchestras have high-quality recordings of their performances.) This fully legitimate free music is often overlooked by the popular media and is hardly a new development on the Internet.

[edit] Music stores

The second phase of music downloading was the online music store, whereby songs could be downloaded at a price. In 2003, iTunes saw the popularity of legal digital downloads skyrocket. Other online websites include URGE, Napster and MSN's Music store. The sales of downloaded music has now surpassed the sales of 'physical copies' in some countries; this has been indicated in the UK where Crazy by Gnarls Barkley reached the top spot in the UK Singles Chart based on download sales alone [1].

[edit] Music downloads offered by artists

Some artists allow their songs to be downloaded from their websites, often as a short preview or a low quality sampling. Others have embeded services in their sites that allow purchases of their singles or albums, as demonstrated by Metallica's official website. In addition to this and to music stores, illegal downloading programs or websites such as limewire, kazaa, bearlite, and many others are very popular.