IFPI Report: Australia is the 6th biggest music market, again
Australia has placed sixth in the world’s Top 10 music markets, contributing to 3% of global revenue.
That’s according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry's (IFPI) annual report, Recording Industry In Numbers 2015.
According to the report, Australia’s 2014 revenue was $376.1 million, a dip of 6.8% on 2013. We remained in sixth place for the third consecutive year, maintaining a gradual decline in revenue over the past two years. In 2013 Australia’s recorded music sales totalled $430 million (down 8.4%) and in 2012 totalled $507 million, an increase of 6.8% on 2011.
Crucially, the decline of recorded music sales is getting smaller and with streaming’s growth filling the gap where traditional digital revenue is declining, the local market is stabilising.
While Australia represented just 2% of the globe’s overall subscription and ad-supported streaming growth – paling in comparison to the USA’s 26% and the UK’s 10% – digital’s total share of revenues in Australia last year was 56% ($211.4m), despite a 2.4% decrease on 2013. In New Zealand digital sales represented 50% of total revenue.
In 2014 Australians purchased 13.1m physical albums, 96m singles and 7.3m digital albums. The IFPI also included licensing fees paid to performing rights groups and sync fees paid for the use of music in advertisements, films and TV shows. In 2014 recorded music revenue from performance rights was $33.7m, up $4.7m on 2013, and revenues from synchronisation was $8.9m, up $200,00 from 2013.
Of Australia’s total population of 22.5m, we have 19.6m internet users, 6.7m broadband households and 30.9m mobile subscriptions.
The report also states Australia's biggest independent record labels are (in alphabetical order): ABC Music, Inertia, Liberation, Ministry Of Sound andMGM.
When ARIA released its 2014 wholesale figures in January, CEO Dan Rosen said: “The continued growth in the subscription market shows that the local music industry is leading the way in streaming digital content. It is an exciting time, as the consumption of music grows through an ever-expanding range of options– whether through subscription services, digital downloads or visiting the local record store to buy vinyl."
As previously reported, the global recorded music industry in 2014 wasbroadly flat once more withglobal revenues dipping 0.4% to AUD$19.65m – the lowest it's been in history and a decrease of more than 31% during the past decade.
For the first time ever, global digital music sales ($6.9 billion) surpassed physical sales ($6.8 billion) last year. The US once again came out as the biggest music market, followed by Japan, Germany, the UK and France.
See the Top 10 music markets below:
