RIAA funding continues to fall, making legal cuts

Copyright lobby group the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) has just released its 2010-2011 tax report and its revenue streams are not looking strong. Membership dues from music labels have dropped considerably, leaving the organisations with less than $30 million in revenue – almost half that of the year before.

Considering the RIAA has never made firm friends with the citizens of the internet, some of you may be pleased to hear that it has had to make big cuts in order to stay afloat. While it's always a shame to see employees let go, one section of reductions in expenditure that is unlikely to bother many is the legal department. Over the past two years, the RIAA has reduced its legal spending from $16.50 million to a comparatively tiny, $2.34 million.

Other notable figures include the fact that lobbying expenses have remained pretty constant and that the top few executives still manage to draw nearly a quarter of the organisations revenue –  something that can't go down well with the forty + individuals that have been let go in the past two years.

All in all though, this report shows a downturn in support from music labels. Of course with just a stale revenue filing, it's difficult to ascertain why this might be. Perhaps the labels don't like being associated with the bad press that the RIAA often seems to generate. It could also be that some labels don't like the group's tactics.

TorrentFreak hinted that this could be the beginning of the end for the RIAA.

KitGuru Says: What do you guys think? Have people had enough with the RIAA? Or is this just a momentary dip and we'll see a return to previous financial success when the 2011-2012 report is released?

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