Determinants of international sound recording piracy

Examines the relative strength and significance of a range of institutional and economic variables thought to influence cross−country variations in sound recording piracy market share. Sound recording piracy imposes significant costs on copyright owners, including record companies, music publishers, recording artists and songwriters. The contribution ofthis paper is the central role allocated to the affordability index (the ratio of legitimate price to average hourly earnings) and to the balance of trade in sound recording product. The estimated regression model identifies a positive and significant relationship between sound recording PMS and the price−earnings (PE) ratio