Recording Industry Manages A Sliver Of Growth For The First Time Since 1999

Recording Industry Manages A Sliver Of Growth For The First Time Since 1999


Global recorded music revenues grew 0.3 per cent to $US16.5 billion last year, marking the first increase since 1999. That’s the year, you’ll remember, that Napster and file sharing brought the industry to its knees.

According to the report from the IFPI, growth is being driven by digital revenue, which was up 9 per cent in 2012. That digital sales accounts for $US5.6 billion in revenue, which is just over one-third of the total.

A full 70 per cent of the digital total comes from online download stores like iTunes, which means that despite their millions of users, subscription-based services like Spotify and Pandora aren’t generating nearly as much industry-sustaining revenue as some of them would have you think.

Either way, growth is growth. Congrats to the music industry on its 0.3 per cent bump. Don’t spend it all in one place. [IFPI via AllThingsD]