Music Streaming Business Grows, But What About the Rest of the Music Business?
Music continues to grow but only in one way now. Today it’s all about streaming, and that’s a rapidly growing market for music in North America—at the cost of pretty much every other form.
“Powered by 22 million subscriptions, streaming overtook all other formats, generating the majority of industry revenues for the first time,” says Cary Sherman, CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America, a trade group that claims to represent the US recording industry.
“The music business, more than any other creative industry, is leading the digital transition,” Sherman added.
The marketplace is still evolving, says Sherman. Two of the three pillars of the business — CDs and downloads — are “declining rapidly,” and it remains to be seen whether growth of the remaining pillar (streaming) will be sufficient to offset the losses from the other two.
Overall, the music business remains smaller than it was 15 to 20 years ago.
