Music Media Multiply

The latest MusicLab report from US agency The NPD Group highlights the rise of music-listening via computer. Radio, audio devices and music videos on television still dominate behaviour, but portable music players, streaming music online and listening to music on a computer all show big increases.

Radio remains the number one way to listen to music, with 194m US citizens aged 13 and over doing so in March 2005, but this is down 4% from 203m in March 2004. By contrast, listening to music stored on a computer rose by 22% (63.2m to 77.2m), online radio listening increased 18% (45.3m to 53.5m) and free streaming of online music increased 37% (33.7m to 46.1m).

The practice of 'ripping' music onto a computer is twice as common as it was a year ago (up 102%); transfer of music to MP3 players is up 127%; and paying to download music files has increased 93%. Consumer visits to music web sites have increased by the relatively modest increment of seven percent this year over last.

Russ Crupnick, President of the NPD Group's Music & Movies division, says the rise of digital listening and storage for music 'continues unabated this year... Technology companies are providing new tools to consumers in the form of powerful music-enabled PCs and portable music players, music companies are answering the call for more content and consumers are responding positively'.

'Music listeners today are faced with a dizzying array of methods for obtaining and listening to music' adds Crupnick, 'but far from inciting confusion, these new technology-driven avenues may be helping consumers sample and enjoy music across a wider variety of music genres'.

The above is based on results from NPD's MusicLab Survey for March 2005, and from the PCs of its MusicWatch Digital panel of 40,000 online users. MusicLab is conducted twice a month among c.5,000 US consumers aged 13+. The Group's home page is at www.npd.com

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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