COPYCENSE

"When R.E.M.’s ‘New Adventures in Hi-Fi’ was released, music buyers yawned — it was the start of a steady decline in U.S. album sales for R.E.M. as hip-hoppers and pop divas eclipsed the band.

"The record industry itself didn’t do much better, as sales overall shrank from its halcyon days of routine multi-platinum hits. Record labels are quick to blame Internet piracy; many fans point to high CD prices instead.

"In 2004, both R.E.M. and the record industry are turning to the Internet to reverse their fortunes.

"Today, the band releases its 13th major album, ‘Around the Sun’ — but for hundreds of thousands of fans, there’s no suspense. They’ve already listened to the entire album for free on the Internet over the past two weeks, and with the band’s label’s encouragement."

Frank Ahrens. Record Labels Aim for Net, Hope to Score. WashingtonPost.com. Oct. 5, 2004.

(Editor�s Note: The Post allows free access to their stories on the Web for 14 days before sending the stories to the paper�s fee-based Archives.)