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Originally Posted by y2687
I think DLing definately has an effect. Big effect.
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mp3s were never that popular in Japan because a high speed connection still costs a lot of money. The biggest portion of music piracy comes from people renting audio CDs from the stores and copying it to their MD player.
I think a big issue is the aging japanese population. (In the news, Japan invented a robot that can put out fires, detect water and gas leaks, and relays information to security personnel. Their reason for this? There are not enough young people to be security guards
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/news...APAN-ROBOT.XML ) By 2040, 1/3 of all Japanese people will be elderly. Ayu has been out for 7 years. Her fans in the beginning are probably much older now and don't listen to her as much. I think thats one factor in a shrinking japanese market, and especially for the J-idol. Mika Nakashima is very popular, but look at her sales of "MUSIC"
BoA sold a lot more because it is a best album, and best albums sell unusually well in Japan.