Canadian Study: Piracy Boosts CD Sales

University of London researchers, Birgitte Andersen and Marion Frenz surveyed a large group of Canadians to find out what the effect of piracy is on music sales. The results are surprising, at least, for the music industry.

The researchers conclude that that people who download more music actually buy more CDs. They report: “We estimate that the effect of one additional P2P download per month is to increase music purchasing by 0.44 CDs per year.”

This basically means that if someone downloads 270 songs a year via BitTorrent, he or she will buy 9 CDs more than someone who only downloads 27 songs. So, in a way illegal downloads actually convert into more CD sales.

Overall the researchers found no difference between pirates and other people in the number of CDs they buy. They did not find a positive or a negative relationship between filesharing and CD sales. So, at worst, filesharing isn’t the cause for a drop in CD sales. It might even be a boon to it.

This study once again confirms that piracy is not as bad as the recording industry content “owners” want us to believe. Filesharing gives people the opportunity to discover new music for free. It makes it easier to try new music before you buy. Right now, downloading songs off P2P networks is pretty much the only way to listen to complete tracks before deciding to buy them.

It is worth mentioning that there are legal alternatives, like Soundpedia and Lala.com’s upcoming service, which will let you stream entire songs for free. However, most people will still prefer pirated music because the quality is much better and they can transfer it to their MP3 player.

via [TorrentFreak]

Maximize CoverFlow on Your iPod with iTunes

Did you know you can get all the album art for you songs in iTunes for free and really easy too!? Well, if you haven't figured it out on your own Lifehacker has put together a nice tutorial to show you how to get a nice cover flow view of your all your albums.

How to Maximize CoverFlow in iTunes

Swizz Beats - One Man Band

Check this shit out. Swizz Beatz has done it again.

You probably have heard his single "It's me Snitches," but the rest of his album is frickin' awesome. So run down to the store and grab this for your party tonight!

One Man Band Wiki

Across the Universe

Is this the new Yellow Submarine? I saw previews for this movie the other day and from what it looks like its trippy, has all Beatles songs in it, and looks AMAZING. It is said to be a Musical/Drama which I don't usually do, but the whole "whoaaaa trippyyyy mann" factor plays a role in my final decision.

Give it a look:

Trailer
IMDB

Kanye did it Again!

Graduation is the latest album by Kanye West. You've heard his awesome singles before such as Gold Digger and Jesus Walks. His new single has been hitting the clubs everywhere. Stronger is a remix of Daft Punk's Better, Faster, Stronger and it couldn't have been produced better.

I've listened to Graduation and this album is amazing and you should definitely check it out.

Graduation is in stores 9/11/07

We Love Dance Department with Dennis Ruyer

College kids,

What is your favorite Podcast?


Danielle
18 years old
Miami, FL


Danielle,

Being a DJ I listen to all types of music, but one genre that I love to listen to is Dance. When I'm not here writing to you guys, I like to be in the clubs or going to see my favorite DJs.

If I were to choose one Podcast it would be Dance Department with Dennis Ruyer.

Check it out here or grab it on iTunes.

Cheers,

The College Kids

Collecting Records

College kids,

I was wondering if you guys knew anything about collecting old vinyl records and what advantages does it have over CD's or mp3's.

Tom
24 years old
Long Beach, CA


Tom,

Well Tom, fortunately for you college kid Sisson and I are somewhat experts on DJing and finding records. So without further adieu let me introduce you to the world of record collecting...

In this day in age many people do not appreciate the soft natural sound that records can provide. Because records are analog instead of digital they can capture a more richer sound compared to most mp3's and CD's. This is because the grooves of the record emulate the exact wavelengths of the song. A record can hold as many wavelengths as it needs with no restrictions. When you convert analog to digital you are only copying thousands of small pieces of the audio, but you are not actually copying the "entire" song. Because of this you do not get the softer sound that vinyl can provide. Converting to mp3 will only make the situation worse because you are reducing the quality of the track to save space.

Despite the sound differences, one could easily argue that CD's and i pod's are much more convenient than carrying around records all day. In this case, they would be correct, but what they do not understand is that collecting records is not about convenience. It is about an experience. It is about owning something with history. For example, that Grateful Dead record in your basement may have been played at your dads graduation party. You mom probably listened to those Elton John records all the time when she was a teenager. Regardless of what they were used for, what is important, is that they meant something to the people who owned them, and the same should go for you.

When it comes to owning records, finding them is half the fun. Most chain music stores do not sell vinyl, but many locally owned stores do. Depending on where you live, finding record shops may require you and you friends to take a mini road trip. It may be a long ride, but trust me it will be worth it. Here are some cool record shops I found around the country:

• Spinnakers Records - Massachusetts
• Princeton Record Exchange - New Jersey
• Amobea Music - California
• Backspin Records - Texas
• Corner Record Shop - Michigan
  

If you can not find anything in your area remember that there are many good websites and stores on eBay.

If anyone has more specific questions on record collecting, DJing, or scratching, please feel free to leave a question.

Cheers,

The College kids