The Future of Music Distribution

“Consumers ages 13 to 17 spent 13 percent less on music downloads last year, while compact disc purchases tumbled 26 percent, according to a survey by the Port Washington, New York- based researcher.”

“Downloads from peer-to-peer networks fell 6 percent in 2008, NPD said. Meanwhile, 52 percent of teens said they listened to online radio in 2008, up from 34 percent from 2007. Almost half of teens, 46 percent, used social-networking sites to download or stream music, an increase from 26 percent in 2007, NPD said.”

via @hansveld

I guess the Isle of Man has something to prove now.

“While overall music sales were up 10 percent in 2008, the year saw a drop not only in CD sales, but also in the number of customers actually purchasing music. But according to a new report, the act of listening to music is actually on the rise. … NPD’s annual Digital Music Study found that there were 17 million fewer CD customers in 2008 than in past years. CD sales have been dropping for quite some time, and while 1.5 billion songs were sold digitally last year, the number of Internet users paying for digital music only increased by 8 million in 2008.”

Via Slashdot.

This says something about the direction the music industry should take regarding music distribution. Less people are buying music, but the people that are buying music are actually buying more. More people are listening to music; so find a way to make money from that - or via that. Reach them while they’re listening.

Former full-time musician and CDBaby founder, Derek Sivers, speaks out about the future of the music industry and musicians. Says some fascinating stuff, like the following about spreading the word about a band/artist:

“I’d make sure that I was always in a real three-way conversation with my fans. Encourage them to talk with me and with eachother. Make my success their success, like Obama.”

Or:

“The music business might be like the poetry business some day. Which means: almost no profit, and people do it because they want to, never for the money. I’m sure there are some companies making money off of poetry, but not many. Not making millions.”

Interesting person, interesting interview. He’s one to listen to. Check it out.

A leak sucks, but they’re keeping their cool. More labels/artists should have this attitude.

A lot of potential for musicians also.