…on-demand audio and video streaming continued to gain in popularity in 2015, posting growth rates of 83% and 102%, respectively. In fact, Justin Bieber’s album Purpose set an all-time record for total audio on-demand streams when it was streamed more than 100 million times the week of its release.
In the physical realm, vinyl stayed strong, as sales of LPs hit a new record in 2015—nearly 12 million units. This marks the 10th straight year of vinyl sales growth. The big winners in this realm were independent record stores, which drove 45% of all vinyl sales. The biggest genre for vinyl? Rock, with 68% of LP sales.
…despite the rise of streaming, these services have not yet overtaken radio as the number one way people are discovering new music. Instead, 61 percent report hearing songs first on AM, FM or satellite radio; 45 percent say it’s word-of-mouth that leads to discovery; 31 percent hear songs in movies or in soundtracks; and then streaming clocks in at fourth place, with 27 percent saying they learned of new songs from streaming websites or apps…
In the U.S., consumers spend 24 hours per week on average listening to music. And of the 91 percent of Americans who listen to music, 75 percent report listening to music online every week, while 44 percent listen on smartphones…
Meanwhile, when it comes to spending on music, live music like concerts (32%) and music festivals (10%) still eat up nearly the majority of spend. Satellite radio accounts for another 11 percent of spending, while paid streaming registers at only 7 percent – behind physical sales (13%) and digital downloads (11%).
