When’s the last time you bought your favorite artist’s new CD? When’s the last time you paid to listen to a song? We may call ourselves so-called music fans; however, we are all guilty of finding loopholes in downloading music in order to save some money. Next time you download or stream from pirate sites, think twice.

Over the last few years, illegal music file sharing has become a problem for the music industry. Although it is evident that the music industry has lost billions of dollars due to this problem, the effects of piracy on individual artists remain unclear for most people. Musicians generate revenue from various sources. Aside from album sales, musicians receive their income through merchandise, movie and TV licensing, streaming services, and many more due to the expansion of technology. You may see this as an advantage, but this simply increased the accessibility for piracy to occur. Cisco had predicted that by 2019, file-sharing, the largest medium of piracy, will grow to 51%.  And this percentage will have drastic financial effects. Studies have shown that illegal downloads and file sharing can reduce music sales up to 30%.

Piracy also hurts the development of new artists in a way where there is a direct correlation between the drop in album sales and the drop in major record labels’ employment. There was a reduction of over 60% in people who have part in the creation of new music due to the drastic drop in the number of albums sold. Due to the decrease in sales, the number of investments that can go into developing and investing in new artists also decrease.

When you download or stream from a pirate site, pirates are the ones profiting. Next time you try to save a few dollars, keep in mind that you are also taking away an artist’s well-deserved revenue. By no longer using illegal sites, you will no longer be considered an accomplice to a crime. Start giving back and allow these artists to thrive.