Peer-to-peer file sharing may have caused a stir in the music industry, but a new study finds little more than a third of college students still participate in illegal downloading.

According to a new study released by the Intellectual Property Institute from the University of Richmond School of Law, 34 percent of college students illegally download music. Also, two-thirds of those downloading music do not care whether the music is copyrighted.

For filmmakers Adam Neer and Mark Hoffmeister, the announcement comes only a week after the release of their documentary, “.Wav of the Future,” which dealt with the issue of the Napster revolution and the lengths the RIAA has gone to crack down of those caught downloading copyrighted music.

“I think that figure is a little low,” Neer said. “I actually think that figure would be around 90 percent.”

Hoffmeister recalled a time in which he and Neer asked one of assistant professor Laura Vazquez’s classes for a show of hands of how many engaged actively in peer-to-peer file sharing.

“About 95 percent of the class raised their hands,” Hoffmeister said. “But it was a communication class, so there could have been other factors contributing to the interest.”

Another part of the study states 74 percent of the students believe downloads “help up-and-coming musicians,” while 49 percent say file-sharing “hurts established musicians.”

“You’re going to hear a band like Metallica make a lot of noise about this issue because they’ve been around forever and have a lot to lose with this new business model,” said David Gunkel, associate professor of communication. “On the other hand, you are not going to hear a lot of noise on this issue from a band like say ‘The Strokes’ because they’re new and they have a lot to gain from this new model.”

Gunkel agrees the numbers seen in the study are rather low, but contends there is an obvious reason for the results.

“I think when you survey students, they are hesitant to respond because they know it’s illegal,” said Gunkel. “They’re protecting themselves.”