Music lobby blames lower sales on piracy

LONDON -- Legitimate music downloads aren't growing quickly enough.

The recording industry's main lobby group said Monday that digital revenue has grown 8 percent over the past year to about $5.2 billion -- a solid figure for some industries, but not for one where overall receipts have fallen by nearly two-thirds amid a shift toward online -- and in many cases illegal -- music downloads.

"The 8 percent figure should be much higher," said Frances Moore, chief executive of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. "That's part of our task in 2012."

Moore blamed music piracy for starving online retailers and music subscription services of customers, saying the legitimate music business was working in an "extremely challenging" environment.

The IFPI's report highlighted many of its efforts, noting there are around 500 legitimate music services worldwide offering up to 20 million tracks.

Music pirates remain the IFPI's No. 1 enemy, and the group's report congratulated several countries on efforts to crack down on illegal file sharing.

The group said most major American Internet service providers had signed up to a "copyright alert system" aimed at issuing warnings to suspected file sharers. But the fight against infringement has seen reverses, such as last week's shelving of the Stop Online Piracy Act.

Worldwide sales of physical music -- such as CDs -- have dropped from $28.1 billion in 2000 to $10 billion in 2011.