Apple's iTunes continues to expand its reach. The online music store says it has completed successful launches in 16 Latin American countries, and one Brazilian music exec is betting it will help squash piracy in his country:
“For 15 years there have been immeasurable losses to pirated CDs, and for 10 years to piracy carried out on the Internet,” said Paulo Rosa, president of the Brazilian Association of Record Producers. “The more legal alternatives there are for the consumer, the better it is for the market. Unquestionably, this will help music sales at the expense of piracy.”[Wapo]
Rosa didn’t offer specifics on his forecasts for how sales might improve, and it remains unclear how consumers will embrace the service, given how widespread piracy of music and videos have become in Brazil and most other Latin American nations. The 16 Latin American nations where the iTunes store is being launched rank among the worst in the world when it comes to pirated
