factsjune04.indd


G a r y  P a t t i l l o  

Gary Pattillo is reference librarian at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, e-mail: pattillo@refstaff. 
lib.unc.edu 

Music fi le sharing 
Despite claims by some recording industry sources, music file sharing has no 
statistically significant effect on purchases of the average album, according to a 
study by Felix Oberholzer of Harvard Business School and Koleman Strumpf of 
the University of North Carolina­Chapel Hill. While there has been a reduction 
in sales in the music industry, file sharing can explain a tiny fraction, if any, of 
the decline. Moreover, the movie, software, and games industries have continued 
to grow despite active file sharing of those products. 
Felix Oberholzer and Koleman Strumpf, “The Effect of File Sharing on Record Sales An Empirical Analysis,” 
www.unc.edu/~cigar/papers/FileSharing_March2004.pdf  April 16, 2004. 

Public libraries in the United Kingdom 
For the last seven years, use of the public library service in the United Kingdom 
has fallen each year. Use of museums and archives, however, has doubled in the 
same time period. A recent report suggests that, at the current rate of decline, 
there may be no public libraries in the United Kingdom in 15 years, unless 
there is a fundamental change in the structure of the library service. Among the 
recommendations of the independent report are to triple spending on books 
and other reading material and to increase opening hours by 50 percent. There 
are exceptions to the decline. For example, the small town of Hay­on­Wye in 
Wales has managed to increase the number of visitors and the quantity of books 
borrowed from its local library. 
Tim Coates, “Who’s in charge? Responsibility for the Public Library Service,” Libri-Charity for Libraries, www. 
rwevans.co.uk/libri/Who%27s%20in%20char_e_(as%20printed.pdf, April 28, 2004. Darren Devine, “Hay library 
bucks UK decline,” icWales, tinyurl.com/2y936, April 28 2004 

Used book market 
According to a new report based on a survey by Book Hunter Press, the used 
book market has changed rapidly in recent years. There are an estimated 8,000 
to 10,000 used book dealers in the United States. Sales by used book dealers 
in 2003 reached an estimated $769 million. This represents a drop of about 8 
percent since 2001. Eighty percent of 2003 used book market sales were made 
by open shops as opposed to Internet­only stores. Open shops accounted for 
50 percent of the dealers in the survey. The year 2002 was the first year that 
online sales generated more than half of all used book sales for the 827 dealers 
in the survey. 
Susan Siegel and David S. Siegel, “A Portrait of the Used Book Market,” 2004, www.bookhunterpress.com/index. 
cgi/survey.html, May 3, 2004 

Teacher facts 
There are 6.2 million teachers in the United States, 71 percent of whom are 
women. Ninety­eight percent of preschool and kindergarten teachers are 
women, while women comprise only 46 percent of postsecondary teachers. 
Elementary and secondary school teachers in California receive the highest 
average salary ($54,300), while those in South Dakota received the lowest pay 
($31,300). Meanwhile, the average annual salary paid to private college profes­
sors is $101,200. 
U.S. Census Bureau, April 22, 2004. “Special Edition - Teacher Appreciation Week,” www.census.gov/Press 
-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/001737.htm, May 3, 2004 

354 / C&RL News   June 2004