National-Level Determinants of Global Music Piracy and Online Music Sales: An Exploratory Study

摘要

Piracy adversely affects online music sales. This article aims to investigate the factors that affect global music piracy directly and electronic business indirectly. These factors can be grouped into three categories: economic, legal/regulatory, and technological. On analyzing data from 68 countries, a country's economic status and regulatory status emerge as the primary factors affecting music piracy. Technology indirectly affects music piracy by acting as a mediator between a nation's economic status and the music piracy rate. Hence, a nation can reduce its music piracy rate and enhance e-business by devising stricter laws to safeguard intellectual property, punishing violations of information and communication technology related laws more strictly, allowing more free trade with other countries, inspiring attitudinal changes about inappropriate copying behavior through awareness campaigns, and encouraging increased and secure broadband usage.