According to Internet research group ComScore, more than 60% of the people who downloaded In Rainbows under Radiohead's potentially revolutionary pay-what-you-want pricing system opted to pay nothing. The study states that of the estimated 1.2 million people that visited the site to download the album, only 38% opted to pay anything, the majority paid no more than $4 and 4% paid more than $12.

The fact that music listeners want to be able to obtain music for free shouldn't surprise anyone. What the study fails to indicate is the number of people that listened to Radiohead's new album solely because it didn't cost them anything to do so. If the RIAA and other like minded institutions use this study to show that people are cheapskates and that this pricing scheme is fatally flawed, they may be missing the forest for the trees. If exposure to this "free" music inspires the downloader to attend a Radiohead concert, buy OK Computer or Kid A or heaven forbid, become a Radiohead fan that purchases future recordings for the rest of the band's life, these "freeloaders" would be helping perpetuate the continued existence of the music industry, not sucking it dry.

Labels: Radiohead