Global music sales continue to plunge

GLOBAL recorded music sales fell 7% to €12.8 billion in 2009, hit by a fall in the world’s two biggest markets of the US and Japan, the industry’s trade body said yesterday.

The IFPI said the 2009 figures – which compared with an 8% drop in 2008 – showed a mixed picture, with a return to growth in 13 markets and digital music sales growing strongly, although rampant music piracy continued to eat into revenues. Susan Boyle, who shot to fame on Simon Cowell’s Britain’s Got Talent show, had the bestselling album with I Dreamed a Dream, which sold 8.3 million copies.

Other top selling acts included the Black Eyed Peas, Michael Jackson, Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga. Five of the top 10 bestsellers were signed to Vivendi’s Universal, with the others on Sony and Warner Music. Global recorded sales have been hit in recent years by piracy and the move to cheaper digital tracks.