Warner Made More From Streaming Than Digital Sales for the First Time
The face of the music industry is changing. It all started with downloads surpassing physical copies and now, according to a report by Warner Music Group, music streaming has trumped digital sales for the first time.
According to Recode, Warner made more from streaming than it did from digital download sales in its most recent quarter. The report shows that revenue from streaming services like Spotify, Rdio and YouTube have increased by 33 percent, while the number of digital sales grew by a meager seven percent during the same time period.
The news comes just as big record labels like Warner Music Group are urging Spotify and YouTube to hold off on the free music they allow their users to stream and, instead, focus more on paid subscriptions.
"The rate of this growth has made it abundantly clear that in years to come, streaming will be the way that most people enjoy music," Stephen Cooper, Warner CEO, said. "We'll continue to collaborate with our streaming partners to expand their businesses, and more importantly, to ensure that copyright owners, artists and songwriters receive appropriate value for their work."
Now that music streaming services are officially making more money than phyiscal CDs for the first time, and with the birth of more music streaming services — hey, TIDAL! — the digital-music landscape is likely set to take over even more than before.
BET.com is your No. 1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music.
Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.
(Photos from Left: Spotify, Warner Music Group, Youtube)
