A new report from the RIAA on recorded music revenue brings some much-needed good news to industry professionals everywhere.
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) released its mid-year review of recorded music revenue, and the results highlight digital streaming’s continuing dominance over the market.
According to the RIAA, overall recorded music revenues grew from $5.6 billion in the first half of 2020 to $7.1 billion in 2021 at retail value. At wholesale value revenues rose 25%, from $3.7 billion in 1H 2020 to $4.6 billion in 1H 2021.
Revenues from streaming, which includes everything from paid subscription services to freemium streaming and customized radio, grew 26% in the first half of 2021 to $5.9 billion.
Streaming accounted for 84% of total revenues for the period, a figure which was largely unchanged year-over-year.
Most revenue comes from subscription services, which totaled $4.6 Billion in 1H 2021, a year-over-year increase of 26%.
Elsewhere in the report, vinyl continued its resurgence, with revenue increasing by 94% year-over-year to $467 million though the comparison versus the prior year includes a period in which retail stores were significantly impacted by Covid-19, and Record Store Day 2020 was delayed and did not occur in the spring (as it
did in 2021). Vinyl is the only physical media showing continuing growth year over year for the last half-decade running/
CDs also fared well in the first half of 2021, with revenue increasing by44% to $205 million, but still remain 19% lower than they were in 1H 2019. CDs only accounted for 30% of physical revenues, while vinyl accounted for more than 2/3 of physical format revenues.
The figures above paint a positive picture of the industry at large. Whether or not that trend continues for the remaining months of the year remains to be seen. Follow Haulix on Facebook and Twitter for updates.
