Figures like these about suposed losses from piracy probably make my sister the accountant cry, but it just goes to show that the RIAA are just a bunch of thieving bastards. The whole article linked above is worth reading, if only to learn about the mathematical and reporting hoops that thieving bastards will go through to confuse everyone.
There is only one logical integration of all these statistics with the recent Soundscan data: even though actual point-of-purchase sales are up by about 9% in the US – and the industry sold over 13,000,000 more units in 2004 (1st quarter) than in 2003 (1st quarter) – the Industry is still claiming a loss of 7% because RIAA members shipped 7% fewer records than in 2003.
Forget the confusing percentages, here’s an oversimplified example: I shipped 1000 units last year and sold 700 of them. This year I sold 770 units but shipped only 930 units. I shipped 10% less units this year. And this is what the RIAA wants the public to accept as “a loss.”