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Instances of music piracy have risen nearly 15 times over in the last three years, new research states.
The latest lead cause of piracy comes from so-called “stream-ripping” websites.
According to new research from PRS For Music, such activity has increased by 1390% between 2016 and 2019, becoming by far the biggest form of music piracy in the UK.
It now means that stream-ripping services account for over 80% of the 50 most popular piracy websites.
The research describes stream-ripping as “the obtaining of a permanent copy of content that is streamed online,” adding: “The process can be carried out on audio and audio-visual content and, in either case, it is possible to create an audio-only copy of the music. Once a copy is created and saved, it is possible for a user to listen to it offline and share it between their devices.”
It goes on to add that YouTube is the service most regularly used for stream-ripping, while Spotify has recently become the second most affected service.
“This report shows that music piracy is very much still alive and kicking, and that stream-ripping is now responsible for a mammoth proportion of the overall piracy problem,” Simon Bourn of PRS For Music said.
“Streaming royalties now account for over 20% of our members’ income, and the popularity of this illegal activity has a severe and direct impact on the royalties we can collect for them from legitimate services,” he added. “Each time a stream is ripped, the user is then listening to and consuming that rip outside of the licensed ecosystem.”
“Streaming royalties now account for over 20% of our members’ income, and the popularity of this illegal activity has a severe and direct impact on the royalties we can collect for them from legitimate services,” he added. “Each time a stream is ripped, the user is then listening to and consuming that rip outside of the licensed ecosystem.”
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