DS Forums

 
 

Streaming overtakes downloads for the first time


Reply
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 23-03-2016, 21:13
JasonWatkins
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 53,675

Not by a huge amount, but i think the fact it's just moved ahead is significant in itself

Digital downloads could be heading in the same direction as CDs, as streaming has become the top moneymaker in music in the US for the first time.

It's largely down to Jay Z's streaming service TIDAL and the launch of Apple Music, according to a report from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

As Tech Radar notes, the streaming umbrella includes paid subscription services like Spotify, TIDAL and Apple Music, as well as the ad-supported YouTube.

Streaming raked in $2.3 billion and claimed 34.3% of all music industry revenue in 2015 compared to digital downloads' 34%.
http://www.digitalspy.com/tech/news/...aker-in-music/

I suppose it's not entirely out of the question to think that it'll move even more in that direction once artists and labels start to cotton on that it will likely make somewhat of a dent in illegal downloading.

Obviously people will still rip stuff off these sites, but the drop in quality may even push them towards streaming as well.
JasonWatkins is online now Follow this poster on Twitter   Reply With Quote
Please sign in or register to remove this advertisement.
Old 23-03-2016, 21:25
Hitstastic
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 4,744
Not too surprising. I suspect the number of people who register an account with Spotify is constantly growing.

This is why I found the success of Justin Bieber a bit too good to be true. In the case of What Do You Mean? yes, initially I think a lot of his fans streamed his single heavily. Over the course of 4 months, more people joined Spotify and more people just started streaming the same songs as everyone else.

The result? Just when it looked like What Do You Mean? was about to drop out of the top 10, it managed to end up back inside the top 5 for two more months instead. As more people join Spotify and play the same songs as everyone else, the more "stream sales" each song is going to get.

Only the biggest artists like Adele, Justin Bieber, One Direction and Zayn have the ability to go #1 on Spotify within 24 hours of being added.
Hitstastic is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 11:06
JasonWatkins
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 53,675
It would be interesting to see how a service would fare if they launched for cheaper than £10 a month, which seems to be the accepted figure for many.

I suppose £10 a month isn't that steep when you consider that the average album is available on iTunes for £5-£6 pounds, but I guess the cost does start to add up if you're paying to stream and buying music at the same time.
JasonWatkins is online now Follow this poster on Twitter   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 11:28
Peter the Great
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 9,080
Not too surprising. I suspect the number of people who register an account with Spotify is constantly growing.

This is why I found the success of Justin Bieber a bit too good to be true. In the case of What Do You Mean? yes, initially I think a lot of his fans streamed his single heavily. Over the course of 4 months, more people joined Spotify and more people just started streaming the same songs as everyone else.

The result? Just when it looked like What Do You Mean? was about to drop out of the top 10, it managed to end up back inside the top 5 for two more months instead. As more people join Spotify and play the same songs as everyone else, the more "stream sales" each song is going to get.

Only the biggest artists like Adele, Justin Bieber, One Direction and Zayn have the ability to go #1 on Spotify within 24 hours of being added.
Of course Adele is one of the artists that isn't a fan of streaming. Her latest album 25 is still not available to stream.
Peter the Great is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 11:31
Peter the Great
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 9,080
It would be interesting to see how a service would fare if they launched for cheaper than £10 a month, which seems to be the accepted figure for many.

I suppose £10 a month isn't that steep when you consider that the average album is available on iTunes for £5-£6 pounds, but I guess the cost does start to add up if you're paying to stream and buying music at the same time.
I would argue the price may need to rise. If streaming becomes more the norm then many streaming providers could be paying out more in royalties than they receive in subscriptions.
Peter the Great is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 11:39
JasonWatkins
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 53,675
I would argue the price may need to rise. If streaming becomes more the norm then many streaming providers could be paying out more in royalties than they receive in subscriptions.
That's a very fair point and I guess a dilemma these companies will face. The price will likely be need to be at a point where most will still see it as accessible and affordable, and £10, at the moment, does seem to be the 'magic' number.

How many people would continue to subscribe if it hit £15 or £20 ?.
JasonWatkins is online now Follow this poster on Twitter   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 11:40
ohglobbits
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 3,137
Are serices like Deezer which give you 5 hours of free listening per mointh counted? Because if people listen ing to music for free on the internet counts how long before youtube views get added to the 'streaming ' count?
ohglobbits is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 12:09
jlp95bwfc
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 8,349
Are serices like Deezer which give you 5 hours of free listening per mointh counted? Because if people listen ing to music for free on the internet counts how long before youtube views get added to the 'streaming ' count?
They already are in the US.
jlp95bwfc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 12:16
Luner13
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 2,807
Streaming is ruining the charts.
Luner13 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 12:17
Thorney
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 730
It would be interesting to see how a service would fare if they launched for cheaper than £10 a month, which seems to be the accepted figure for many.

I suppose £10 a month isn't that steep when you consider that the average album is available on iTunes for £5-£6 pounds, but I guess the cost does start to add up if you're paying to stream and buying music at the same time.
But it is less than £10 as you can use it for free and most people do.
Thorney is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 12:50
CLL Dodge
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2003
Location: The Green Hills of Earth
Posts: 80,454
Another nail...
CLL Dodge is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 12:52
AcerBen
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Posts: 13,155
Streaming is becoming more popular at the expense of downloads, but I've read that the decline in CD sales has slowed considerably, and is holding up quite well - in the UK anyway.

I also don't think it's inevitable that streaming will kill off owning music, because a significant amount of people would never consider paying £10 a month, because they don't want or need unlimited access to music. For some people, downloading the odd single or buying the odd Adele album or Now CD to put in the car is all they want.
AcerBen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-03-2016, 20:56
JasonWatkins
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 53,675
But it is less than £10 as you can use it for free and most people do.
Yeah I get that, but obviously you'll have a quality issue with free streams a lot of the time with a lower bitrate which, to be fair, probably won't be noticable by the masses.

But i still think it would be interesting to see a lower priced service and to see if it did have any kind of significant impact on the industry as a whole - including piracy.
JasonWatkins is online now Follow this poster on Twitter   Reply With Quote
Old 25-03-2016, 08:04
jcafcw
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 9,454
I pay £5/month for my Spotify account. I get unlimited streaming I am not too sure why anyone would pay the extra fiver seeing as the £5 one is ad-free.
jcafcw is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-03-2016, 08:14
Thorney
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 730
I pay £5/month for my Spotify account. I get unlimited streaming I am not too sure why anyone would pay the extra fiver seeing as the £5 one is ad-free.
I didnt even know there was a £5 one, ahh wait is that student discount you get all the same features as £10
Thorney is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-03-2016, 09:22
jcafcw
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 9,454
I didnt even know there was a £5 one, ahh wait is that student discount you get all the same features as £10
Not a student one. When I joined you could choose free with adverts, £5 or £10. I chose the £5 tier and have had it ever since.
jcafcw is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 25-03-2016, 11:53
Thorney
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 730
Not a student one. When I joined you could choose free with adverts, £5 or £10. I chose the £5 tier and have had it ever since.
weird wonder what the difference is, do you get offline play and 320K tracks or are you paying £5 just to get the ads removed?
Thorney is offline   Reply With Quote
 
Reply




 
Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 14:43.