Classical Downloads

Listeners may prefer live music, but this preference hasn't hurt the download industry in any way.

According to the poll listed on the Classical Music page last week, most Suite101 readers preferred their music live and only two voted to listen to their music on an iPod (or other MP3 player, I presume). Yet recently the BBC offered the Beethoven Symphonies in downloadable format for its listeners, and the number of requests surpassed expectations 40 times over. Does this mean there are actually more people out there who enjoy listening to downloaded music? Or is the ability to download simply a matter of convenience? Would most listeners prefer live music, but since they can't always get to concerts, they resort to purchasing and downloading their music from online providers?

This is an interesting question. What do you think?