Understanding Consumer Behavior Can Curb Music Piracy: MBA News

By QS Contributor Updated Sep 01, 2014

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Introduction
Vlerick Business School professor offers online music retail tips

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Music piracy, the industry’s bête noire, can be lessened if consumer behavior is better understood by online music retailers.

That’s the message from Belgium’s Vlerick Business School, where faculty-member, Frank Goedertier, has carried out extensive research into online music consumer behavior.

“Our research shows that consumers do prefer legal and ethical options if available but each age group has different ways of making this economically viable,” said Goedertier in a press release for Vlerick Business School.

Goedertier, Vlerick Business School’s specialist in brand management and marketing communications, has a particular interest in consumer behavior. In approaching the topic of music piracy, he conducted 100 interviews with online music consumers across a range of age-groups. Analyzing these results, he identified a number of different segments in which consumer behavior displayed distinct characteristics, determined largely by their age-group.

Vlerick Business School professor offers online music retail tips

From this analysis, Goedertier has recommended two strategies that could help online music retailers curb music piracy. For younger users, developing a free music approach that is supported by advertisements should appeal. Conversely, visible advertising should be avoided when targeting older users, but these consumers are willing to pay for downloads if the quality is high.

“The younger segment predominantly tends to disregard the law and are outspoken when it comes to their preference for free downloads and streaming. The older segment proved more law-abiding and ethically concerned. This segment is willing to pay for music as long as they can avoid pop-ups and advertisements,” said Goedertier, in explaining consumers’ differing outlooks on music piracy.

Frank Goedertier heads Vlerick Business School’s brand management center, established in 2002. He has been collaborating with B. Weijters and S. Verstreken on a forthcoming paper, ‘Online music consumption in today's technological context’, that is set to be published in the Journal of Business Ethics.