Where did illegal downloading start?

Let's start where illegal downloading started for so many — Napster — and then continue on to Limewire and Kazaa. Believe it or not, Napster was actually created back in 1999, which makes it older than many music fans are today.

How did illegal downloads affect album sales?

From Kazaa and LimeWire to Soulseek, RapidShare and countless others, fans were granted the ability to own their favorite tracks free of charge, upsetting artists and labels alike, and ultimately leading to plummeting album sales. In short, your stash of illegally downloaded discographies changed the game.

Can you download music without permission?

Napster and LimeWire were some of the earliest music-sharing applications that did not obtain proper permissions to use licensed music. Users were able to download and share copyright-protected music without permission. All commercially produced music is copyright protected. To download or stream it, you need permission to do so.