From Salon.Com's technology news:

Record labels seek to profit by mining file-swap data:

Nov. 14, 2003 | LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The recording industry, it seems, doesn't hate absolutely everything about illicit music downloading.

Despite their legal blitzkrieg to stop online song-swapping, many music labels are benefiting from – and paying for –
intelligence on the latest trends in Internet trading.

It's a rich digital trove these recording executives are mining. By following the buzz online, they can determine where geographically to market specific artists for maximum profitability...