Forbes’ interview with Lin Bin from Google China on Google’s music search service is an interesting read. For those who came in late, Baidu has a popular (pirated)music search. According to Lin Bin, 99.9% music download in China is illegal,because Baidu has made access to pirated music easier for the Chinese.
And that is the main message on this post. Lin Bin says “Users search Baidu, and they can easily find anything they want. India and Russia also have a lot of piracy, but here, Baidu has a very large market share, and that means users barely have to try to get access to pirated music”
Music download behaviour amongst Indian youngsters is highlylinked to pirated free music. However, an average Indian youngster listens to at least three types of music:international,bollywood & regional. Accessing different music is not as easy. A player like Baidu with its customised music search can make things really simple for the consumer (and a nightmare for music labels & enforcement agencies). Innovative business models will be needed in India to curb piracy, not all of them will necessarily generate profits for the ecosystem. But then, are music labels in India ready to make that sacrifice and play long term?
Another Click in the Wall 
Posted by Google Music Search launches in India « Another Click in the Wall on October 24, 2010 at 08:30
[…] had earlier blogged about Google’s music search in China and how it is trying to combat Baidu in the country. A […]