Digital Music business and OMIP22 Apr 2015 17:44
A recent trade study of the music business during 2014 (reported by Musically) established that digital revenues worldwide were up 6.9% in value last year (2014) to $6.85bn. The growth was stunted due to downloads (the iTunes model) dropping by 8% overall (10.9% for single tracks and 4.2% for digital albums). Streaming (the Spotify model) was up by 39% ($1.57bn) representing 23% of total digital income, taking up the slack caused by the loss in download revenue, (CD sales were down by 8%) streaming up by 18% on 2013 with Spotify, Deezer, Rdio, Napster, Tidal and others achieving 41million paying subscribers. This represents a growth of over 500% since 2010 and a 40% increase over 2013. Global sales as a whole including all formats were down 0.4% overall. The industry feeling is that this is encouraging and suggests that the market drop since the turn of the millennium is reaching a turning point.
The industry will have to watch 2015 very carefully as to how much music sales (CDs and downloads) decline this year and monitor the growth in streaming versus the fall in other formats to establish the shape of the evolving music industry.
One Media's end of year numbers for October 2014 showed turnover growth of 9.5% and normalized profit increase of 21.7% over the previous year (the 2014 reported pretax profit increase was 95% after AIM cost attributed in its 2013 numbers).
"As a small business we are able to manage the 'curves' and respond quickly said Michael Infante OMIP's CEO "Our strengths are in our diversification across all the media platforms including YouTube, which remains the 'dark horse of streaming income, with now over 1.5bn users. Monetisation and profit is a long wait for Spotify, as they are a pure delivery channel. As a content owner, we are profitable, debt free, cash resourced and paying dividends. Sure we have grown slowly but unlike many of our peers, listed or private, we have remained very positively ahead of the pack."
Ivor Novello winner Mungo Jerry (Ray Dorset) famed for the global hit In the summertime, which is estimated to have sold a staggering thirty million units and is now officially recognised as the most played summer song of all time, will be releasing his exclusive new album Good Times: Some Hits & More Stuff through One Media in May 2015. May the good times roll on for One Media iP Ltd, as they continue to stay one step ahead.