The size of the legal online music and video downloads market grew 80.6 percent to £112 million in the last year and is expected to reach £163 million by end of 2007, according to a new Verdict Research report (via Reuters). Digital downloads now account for 4.1 percent of the music and video market, the UK Music And Video Retailers 2007 report says, but are forecast to rise to £600 million and 13.5 percent of the market by 2012. Verdict reckons abandonment of DRM, price competition and high street stores bettering their online offerings will all grow the market.
Meanwhile, Gigwise on Friday quoted an unattributed source close to Radiohead as saying the band sold 1.2 million copies of In Rainbows – the online-only album for which it is leaving the pricing up to customers – within a few days of its release. Pointing to an online poll in which most customers said they chose to pay £4, the site reckons the band has netted £4.8 million in the last week.