Philip Houska Music streaming is becoming more and more popular these days. For a small amount of money paid monthly, you can enjoy an endless amount of musical creations that are offered in services such as Spotify, Deezer and, of course, Apple Music. People are hearing about such an offer, with the result that the music industry grew last year for the first time since 2011.
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) released a chart showing that streaming was the top source of revenue for the music industry last year, generating $2,4 billion in the United States. By three-tenths of a percent, it surpassed digital downloads, which stopped at a 34% share.
It is the ever-growing streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music that may in the future be behind the destruction of digital music stores, among which iTunes reigns supreme. The fact that profits from digital carriers fell in 2015 for albums by 5,2 percent and for individual songs even by less than 13 percent also supports the possible fulfillment of these predictions.
When it comes to music streaming, it's worth mentioning that only half of the total revenue comes from paying users. Free online "radio" services such as Pandora and Sirius XM or ad-laden services such as YouTube and the free variant of the popular Spotify took care of the rest.
Although both YouTube and Spotify, which currently boast thirty million paying users, have paid plans in their portfolios, most people use their ad-laden free versions. The RIAA has repeatedly appealed to two of the biggest streaming music services to somehow force their users to switch to paid usage, but it's not that simple. Today's society likes to enjoy music for free and it's no wonder - if there is such an option, why not use it. Undoubtedly, there is a certain percentage of people who will support their favorite artists beyond streaming, but it is definitely not the majority.
“We and many of our compatriots in the music community feel that these tech giants are enriching themselves at the expense of the people who actually make the music. (…) Some companies take advantage of outdated government regulations and regulations to avoid paying fair rates, or to avoid paying at all," said Cary Sherman, president and CEO of the RIAA, in his blog.
However, this situation does not apply to the streaming service Apple Music, which only offers paid plans (except for the three-month trial period). Thanks to this approach, Apple also gets artists, and the company has earned money for its service, among other things the presence of Taylor Swift's latest album "1989" a exclusive footage from her concert tour.
There is no doubt that music streaming will continue to grow. The only question that arises is when the already mentioned physical or digital media will be phased out completely. However, there will still be a certain group of people in the world who will not give up their "CDs" and will continue to support their favorite artists in this direction. But the question is whether these artists will continue to release their music even in these outdated formats for a handful of people.
I would really like to know how it is with the income of an artist whose customer will one day use Apple Music. How much of it do they have? Is it even worth it to them?
Perhaps the attached link could answer your question, but it was published nine months ago, so circumstances may have changed slightly.
http://betanews.com/2015/06/25/apple-music-earns-artists-just-3-cents-an-hour/