Well, they don't go as far as saying "once all those download services are here, we're going to make a mint" - but there does seem to be a bit more optimism doing the rounds regarding the state of the music industry just now. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry are particularly upbeat, yesterday predicting that the global music industry will enter a period of recovery in the next year after a long period of decline in sales and profits.
Much of that confidence comes from the US where CD sales have actually rise 9.4% in the year to date. Coupled with the revenue potential record labels could earn once the legal download services really gain momentum, many in the industry are now cautiously confident of the short term future. IFPI's Head Of Market Research Keith Jopling told reporters yesterday "We are turning a corner".
He reckons that recovery in the US is down to a combination of a hardline policy on illegal downloading, the growth of legit download services and recent CD price reductions. If that is the case labels could engineer a similar change of fortunes in other territories by adopting a similar strategy. "If [the US figures] are the result of a combined formula of anti-piracy lawsuits knocking people off file-sharing sites and the massive adoption of legal services and a spike in CD sales then it could be good news for everyone."
Jopling added: "What we are most happy about is most people who are consuming music online are buying CDs as well. I have a theory that there is something about these services such as iTunes and Napster which is sparking an interest in music which is leading to increase physical sales".