Global Music Biz Sees 10.2% Growth In 2023 – Industry

Global music revenues increased 10.2 percent last year to $28.6 billion, according to data released Thursday, but record labels are anxious about how to maintain growth in the streaming era.

According to the annual report of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which represents global record companies, Taylor Swift was the world’s most successful musician.

Swift was shortly followed by two Korean bands, Seventeen and Stray Kids, demonstrating the growing popularity of K-Pop.

The world’s biggest singles were “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus, the only song to cross 2 billion streams (2.7 billion), followed by “Calm Down” by Rema and Selena Gomez (1.89 billion) and “Kill Bill” by Sza.

The music business expanded for the ninth consecutive year, owing primarily to the ongoing rise of streaming (up 11.2%), which now accounts for more than two-thirds (67.3%) of global sales.

Paid streaming subscribers surpassed 500 million for the first time, totaling 667 million.

Physical formats, particularly vinyl, experienced increase, with sales up 13.4 percent.

“The figures in this year’s report reflect a truly global and diverse industry, with revenues growing in every market, every region and across virtually every recorded music format,” said John Nolan, IFPI’s chief financial officer.

The fastest-growing regions were Sub-Saharan Africa (up 24.7 percent) and Latin America (19.4 percent), thanks to the spread of streaming and the rise of local stars like Burna Boy, Asake, J Balvin and Bad Bunny.

The biggest music markets remained the United States, Japan and Britain.

TikTok effect

The industry has several key concerns, however, particularly as young people spend increasing time on TikTok and games.

“The worst ad-supported, short-clip video platforms have no chance of leading to paid subscriptions and are becoming the primary consumption platforms for many young consumers,” said Dennis Kooker, of Sony Music, at a press conference to launch IFPI’s report.

Universal Music Group recently yanked its music off TikTok in a feud over the app’s approach to AI-generated music and song royalties.

Kooker suggested record firms were increasingly focused on superfans.

“Those who want more, and are willing to pay more, need products that are specifically designed for them,” he said.

But firms are finding it hard to encourage people to pay for streaming in several key markets, including France.

“The streaming penetration rate is still very low in France,” said Marie-Anne Robert, managing director Sony Music France, at the conference.

“It’s a huge challenge for us and the artists and the recent introduction of a streaming tax clearly does not help,” she added, referring to a new tax on services like Spotify that is being introduced this year in France.

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