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.

“The global music business is continuing to fight its corner, investing in talent and developing new business models despite the problems of a market rigged by piracy,” IFPI chief executive John Kennedy said in a statement.

“Music companies are investing over €3.7bn a year in developing and marketing artists, licensing hundreds of services and adapting their distribution channels to meet changing consumer demand.”

The US and Japan made up 80% of the overall market decline, the IFPI said, while the worldwide fall in revenue outside those two markets was 3.2%.

Physical sales of music such as CDs fell 12.7% globally, while digital music sales rose 9.2% to €3.2bn.

Outside the recorded business, the broader music industry which includes areas such as radio advertising and live performance sales fell 8% to €106bn.