Physical music sales top downloads, but streaming is king

Vinyl a bright spot among physical formats: RIAA

By: Derek Hawkins Posted: 4:00 AM CDT Monday, Mar. 26, 2018

Digital downloads had a short run as the top-selling format in the music industry. It took until 2011, a decade after the original iPod came out, for their sales surpass those of CDs and vinyl records, and they were overtaken by music streaming services just a few years later.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/03/2018 (3108 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Now, digital downloads are once again being outsold by CDs and vinyl, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.

The RIAA released its 2017 year-end revenue report on Thursday, showing revenue from digital downloads plummeted 25 per cent to US$1.3 billion over the previous year. Revenue from physical products, by contrast, fell just four per cent to US$1.5 billion.

Overall, the music industry grew for a second year straight. And with US$8.7 billion in total revenue, it’s healthier than it has been since 2008, according to the report.

Nearly all of the growth was the result of the continued surge in paid music subscription services such as Spotify and Apple Music. Those services grew by more than 50 per cent to US$5.7 billion last year and accounted for nearly two-thirds of the industry’s revenue. Physical media accounted for 17 per cent, while digital downloads made up just 15 per cent.

The outlook for digital downloads is bleak. This is the third year in a row they’ve posted double-digit declines, according to the RIAA.

The situation isn’t rosy for physical media either. CD shipments continued their years-long decline, falling six per cent to US$1.1 billion in 2017, according to the report.

But vinyl sales were up 10 per cent to US$395 million — a “bright spot among physical formats,” the RIAA noted.

— Washington Post