Year in Review: Leaks

In 2008 there were a number of high profile leaks of albums prior to their official release date. These included:

· Guns and Roses – Chinese Democracy[1]
· AC/DC – Black Ice[2]
· Metallica – Death Magnetic[3]
· Cold Play – Viva La Vida Or Death and All It’s Friends[4]
· Usher – Here I Stand[5]
· U2 – No Line on the Horizon[6]
· R Kelly – 12th Play, 4th Quarter[7]
· Gnarls Barkley – The Odd Couple[8]

Music from The Dears, Nas and Lil Wayne was also found on file sharing networks before being made available for purchase in shops and online.[9]

In each case it appears as though the pre release leaks had little impact on sales.[10] Metallica sold close to 500,000 copies in the first week and a further 337,000 in the second week.[11] Lil Wayne was reported to have secured sales of 1 million albums in the first week despite the leak of his music.[12] Coldplay sold 302,000 copies in the first three days of the album going on sale despite a staggered global release strategy.[13] Usher sold 433,000 units in the first week his album was sold despite the fact that the album was downloaded 554,716 times in the first five days of its pre release leak.[14]

Speculation persists as to whether at some of these leaks are deliberate. Despite the band BuckCherry issuing a press release to complain about their music being leaked it was later established that the initial leak had come from the bands management.[15]

In other cases it appears less likely that the leak was authorised with Kevin Cogill being investigated by the FBI and charged under the Family and Entertainment Copyright Act of 2005 for posting nine tracks from the Guns and Roses album Chinese Democracy on his website.[16] The bloggers arrest highlighted the availability of the album and therefore resulted in more downloads of the tracks.[17]


[1] TechDirt, Guns N' Roses Loves Online Music, On Its Own Terms (20 November 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081120/0736312898.shtml> at 21 November 2008; Digital Music News, Guns N' Roses Single Starts Floating; Album On Deck (23 October 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/102208roses> at 24 October 2008; Digital Music News, Axl to Grind: FBI Investigates Chinese Democracy Leak (27 June 2008)<http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/062608chinese> at 28 June 2008; Digital Music News, Guns N' Roses Chases Chinese Democracy Leak... (19 June 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/061908guns> at 26 June 2008
[2] ZeroPaid, ACDC 'Black Ice' Leaked to BitTorrent (11 October 2008) <http://www.zeropaid.com/news/9802/ACDC%27s+%27Black+Ice%27+Leaked+to+BitTorrent> at 12 October 2008
[3] Digital Music News, Metallica Slows Down, But Still Stays on Top (26 September 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/092508metallica> at 5 October 2008; TechDirt, Metallica Still Struggling With Embracing The Whole File Sharing Thing (16 September 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080916/0258502283.shtml> at 21 September 2008; ZeroPaid, Metallica on Album Leak to BitTorrent: Happy Days (6 September 2008) <http://www.zeropaid.com/news/9738/Metallica+on+Album+Leak+to+BitTorrent%3A+%27Happy+Days%27> at 12 September 2008; TechDirt, Lars Ulrich On Metallica's Latest Album Being Leaked Online: It's Fine, We're Happy (4 September 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080904/0349242167.shtml> at 5 September 2008
[4] Digital Music News, Metallica Album Leaks; Band Plays It Cool... (4 September 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/090308metallica> at 4 September 2008; Digital Music News, Guns N' Roses Leaker Arrested by FBI... (27 August 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/082708gnr> at 28 August 2008; Digital Music News, R. Kelly Album Becomes Latest Leak... (30 July 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/072908rkelly> at 31 July 2008; Digital Music News, Coldplay Plays It Well; Chart-Topper In Britain (16 June 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/061508coldplay> at 20 June 2008
[5] Digital Music News, Metallica Album Leaks; Band Plays It Cool... (4 September 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/090308metallica> at 4 September 2008; Digital Music News, Guns N' Roses Leaker Arrested by FBI... (27 August 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/082708gnr> at 28 August 2008; Digital Music News, Coldplay Album Starts Leaking; Release Date Mid-June (6 June 2008)<http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/060508coldplay> at 7 June 2008; Digital Music News, Usher Survives; Shifts 433,000 Albums First Week (5 June 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/060408usher> at 6 June 2008; Digital Music News, ..But Upcoming Usher Album Starts Leaking (22 May 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/052208usherleak> at 4 June 2008
[6] Digital Music News, Developing: Another U2 Piracy Scare Surfaces... (18 August 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/081708u2> at 20 August 2008; CNet News, Bono blamed for unreleased U2 songs on Internet (17 August 2008) <http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10018810-93.html?hhTest=1> at 20 August 2008; ZeroPaid, Bono to Blame for Leaked U2 Tracks (19 August 2008) <http://www.zeropaid.com/news/9704/Bono+to+Blame+for+Leaked+U2+Tracks> at 20 August 2008; The Register, U2 Tracks Disappear From YouTube (18 August 2008) <http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/08/18/u2_window_leak/> at 20 August 2008
[7] Digital Music News, R. Kelly Album Becomes Latest Leak... (30 July 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/072908rkelly> at 31 July 2008
[8] ZeroPaid, New Gnarls Barkley 'The Odd Couple' Album Leaked to BitTorrent (15 March 2008) <http://www.zeropaid.com/news/9330/New+Gnarls+Barkley+%27The+Odd+Couple%27+Album+Leaked+to+BitTorrent%21> at 18 March 2008
[9] TechDirt, Band Actually Promotes The Fact That Its Album Was Leaked (Against Its Wishes) (19 September 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080918/0306542306.shtml> at 21 September 2008; Digital Music News, Metallica Album Leaks; Band Plays It Cool... (4 September 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/090308metallica> at 4 September 2008; Digital Music News, Guns N' Roses Leaker Arrested by FBI... (27 August 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/082708gnr> at 28 August 2008; Digital Music News, R. Kelly Album Becomes Latest Leak... (30 July 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/072908rkelly> at 31 July 2008; Digital Music News, Another Inevitable: Upcoming Nas Album Starts Leaking (7 July 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/070608nas> at 9 July 2008
[10] Digital Music News, Guns N' Roses Leaker: Now Out on Bail... (28 August 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/082808guns> at 1 September 2008
[11] Digital Music News, Metallica Slows Down, But Still Stays on Top (26 September 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/092508metallica> at 5 October 2008; Digital Music News, What Leak? Metallica First-Week Edges Towards Half-a-Mil (17 September 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/091608metallica> at 21 September 2008
[12] Digital Music News, Another Inevitable: Upcoming Nas Album Starts Leaking (7 July 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/070608nas> at 9 July 2008; TechDirt, Despite Leaks, Lil Wayne Album Selling Strong (12 June 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/061108lil> at 13 June 2008
[13] Digital Music News, Coldplay Plays It Well; Chart-Topper In Britain (16 June 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/061508coldplay> at 20 June 2008; Digital Music News, Coldplay Unleashed In Britain; Indicators Looking Good (13 June 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/061208coldplay> at 15 June 2008
[14] Digital Music News, Coldplay Album Starts Leaking; Release Date Mid-June (6 June 2008)<http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/060508coldplay> at 7 June 2008; Digital Music News, Usher Survives; Shifts 433,000 Albums First Week (5 June 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/060408usher> at 6 June 2008; Digital Music News, The Usher Leak: Download Estimates Emerge... (26 May 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/052608usher> at 4 June 2008
[15] Slyck, Buckcherry Slams BitTorrent Leak (22 July 2008) <http://www.slyck.com/story1718_Buckcherry_Slams_BitTorrent_Leak> at 23 July 2008; TechDirt, Band Leaks Own Tracks To BitTorrent, Pretends To Be Pissed Off (31 July 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080731/1231121854.shtml> at 6 August 2008
[16] TechDirt, Guns N' Roses Loves Online Music, On Its Own Terms (20 November 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081120/0736312898.shtml> at 21 November 2008; TechDirt, Blogger Who Uploaded GNR Album Pleads Guilty, Accepts Deal (11 November 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081110/1939572792.shtml> at 16 November 2008; SiliconValley, Man who posted unreleased Guns N' Roses songs online is charged (1 September 2008) <http://www.siliconvalley.com/news/ci_10358404?nclick_check=1> at 5 September 2008; CNet News, FBI arrests blogger accused of leaking Guns N' Roses tracks (27 August 2008) <http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10027657-1.html> at 1 September 2008; Digital Music News, Guns N' Roses Leaker Arrested by FBI... (27 August 2008) <http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/082708gnr> at 28 August 2008; TechDirt, Doesn't The FBI Have More Important Things To Do Than Chase Down The Guy Who Leaked The New Guns N' Roses Album? (25 June 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080625/0111221510.shtml> at 26 June 2008
[17] TechDirt, Blogger's Arrest Resulted In Much More Downloading Of GNR Music (10 September 2008) <http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080907/1650382188.shtml> at 12 September 2008