IFPI unveils 2015’s Digital Music Report, digital revenues up 6.9% globally
The IFPI has unveiled the 2015 edition of its annual global Digital Music Report, which paints an interesting picture of the evolution of the worldwide recorded music industry.
Overall, global recorded music revenues in 2014 declined by 0.4%, this represents an improvement over last year’s report which highlighted a 3.9% decline in 2013.
The physical market declined by 8.1% in 2014 and for the first time digital revenues surpassed physical ones, if only marginally (both now hold a 46% market share).
This means that by next year almost certainly digital will have cemented its position as the n.1 revenue source for the recorded music industry.
Subscription services registered a 39% growth in revenues, a slight decline from the 51% growth registered in 2014, and offset the 8% decline in music download sales which has been particularly strong in North America, Europe and Australia.
Frances Moore, chief executive of the IFPI, stated:”…the music industry’s digital revolution continues through new phases, driven by the consumer’s desire for access to, rather than ownership of, music. It is a reflection of how much we have adapted that digital revenues today are, for the first time, on a par with physical.”
The IFPI does address a key concern of today’s industry which is the gap between the value that certain digital platform extract from music and the value that is returned to rights owners. The organisation points to the difference in the revenues generated by subscription services when compared to those generated by YouTube, which sees over 1 billion unique users per month. Moore commented: “…digital platforms such as Daily Motion and YouTube taking advantage of exemptions from copyright laws that simply should not apply to them.”
As far as regional markets are concerned, it is surprising to see Asia report the biggest drop compared to 2013 with a 3.6% decline, North America registered a 1.1% drop and Europe remained largely flat.
The biggest gains came from Latin America, with a 7.3% increase, there is a real opportunity for growth there and services that can provide a localised music offering and provide consumers with alternative payment methods (other than international credit cards) stand to do well.
When it comes to the biggest artists and tracks in the world. Pharrell Williams claimed the top spot with “Happy” as 2014's top digital single with 13.9 million sales, whilst the Frozen soundtrack was the best-selling album of 2014 with 10 million sales, followed by Taylor Swift’s 1989 with 6 million and Ed Sheeran’s X with 4.4 million.
(Andrea Leonelli)