NEW SURVEY SAYS SOME DOWNLOADERS SCARED, OTHERS NOT (SURPRISE!)

While the RIAA’s lawsuits against individuals have supposedly cooled music downloading in the U.S. by 14%, a new survey by the Pew Internet and American Life Project says, more people admit to downloading than did in November, when the think tank conducted its last survey. 18% of the current survey’s respondents, polled in February, say they download music—either legally or illegally—compared to 14% last time around.

17 million Americans say they have stopped downloading music largely because they fear being sued. Nearly a third of such respondents cited the suits as their primary reason for stopping.

Of those still downloading, 38% say they are downloading less out of copyright lawsuit concerns. And of those who say they have never downloaded, three in five say the threat of being sued is enough for them never to start.

The Pew study doesn’t distinguish between legitimate paid download services and the illicit file-sharing netw, but of those who say they currently download, 17% say they use paid services, though not necessarily exclusively.

On a more ominous note, those who say they share music, video or other files with others is up to 23% in the current survey—a 3% increase from the last study in November.