"And, as has been proven during the pandemic, those subscriptions have gone up as people have gone looking for comfort." In Q1 2021, 487 million subscribers worldwide paid for streaming services, up from 341 million at the end of 2019. "WE ARE JUST NOW IN THE EARLY STAGES OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY'S renaissance"Īlexandre Phily, analyst at Union Bancaire PrivéeĪ £10 monthly subscription is something pretty much everyone can make, says Merck Mercuriadis, CEO of Hipgnosis Songs Fund, in an interview with The Guardian. This breakneck growth has not been derailed by the pandemic, quite the opposite. 62% of the recorded music industry’s total revenue.
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Users would rather pay a subscription fee to listen to music than download for free." Virtually non-existent in 2010, streaming generated more than $13 billion in revenue in 2020, i.e. "One click gives consumers access to a music library, with no storage limit or download time. "Paid streaming has brought people an all-new type of service," says Alexandre Phily of UBP. listening to music online, has provided new ways of monetising music after years of piracy. Since then, the sector has slowly but surely regained strength with the emergence of a new technology: streaming, i.e. After culminating at $28.6 billion in 1999, the global recorded music market collapsed and fell more than 50% in 15 years to $14 billion in 2014, according to figures from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). But like the fabled, ill-fated cicada, they paid dearly for their short-sightedness in coping with the devastating onslaught of illegal downloads.
In the late 1990s, major record labels were singing, flamboyant and carefree. Not bad for an industry that was practically on its death bed 10 short years ago. Fifteen months later, its capitalisation has soared to close to $23 billion. The world’s third biggest music company, behind Universal and Sony, was valued at $15 billion when it came on the stock exchange stage. A year and a half earlier, in June 2020, Warner Music’s IPO was already a hit. The company’s stock is currently trading at around €24, more than 30% above its IPO price. On 21 September, the world’s largest recorded music company, Universal Music Group (UMG), rocked a show-stopping IPO on the Amsterdam stock exchange. He predicts that "music revenue will continue to grow at an annual rate of 7% to 10%".Īnd investors are loving it. "The sector still has huge growth potential." Richard Speetjens, portfolio manager of Global Consumer Trends strategy at Robeco, agrees. "We’re just now in the early stages of the music industry’s renaissance," says Alexandre Phily, an analyst at Union Bancaire Privée (UBP). Despite the pandemic, in 2020 the recorded music industry generated sales of $21.6 billion, up 7.4% from one year earlier, marking the sixth consecutive year of growth. Because yes, music is making money once again. The rhythmically clinking coins make for the perfect introduction to this special report. Before you start reading this article, crank up the volume on your amp and listen carefully to the first notes of "Money", the timeless 1973 classic by Pink Floyd.