Digital Sales Carry Australian Music Business to Growth for First Time in Three Years
Announcement posted by Monster Music 21 Mar 2013
Network of music teachers in Australia reveals how this could produce unprecedented growth for Australian music scene.
Perth, March 20, 2013 - Between the fall of the global economy and the rise of piracy, the music business has had a rough go of it the last few years. In Australia, as across the globe, music sales have been down and many in the industry wondered whether music would be able to recover.
When the numbers for 2012 were tabulated, the Australian music industry finally got the news they have been waiting for the last three years: sales are finally up. According to a report from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), Australia now has the sixth biggest music market in the world, and grew for the first time since 2009.
According to ARIA figures, Australians spent $398.1 million on music in 2012 for a 4% gain over 2011. While physical music sales decreased slightly, digital music sales came through in a big way. Not only did people buy more digital products, but digital streaming services, such as Pandora, Deezer, and Spotify, made a significant impact on the market.
In 2012, digital products accounted for more than 46% of Australian music sales. This represents a 25.3% increase over 2011, when digital products accounted for 36.7% of sales. In 2012, Australians purchased 110,419,156 digital tracks, which is nearly twice that of 2011. Digital streaming companies made incredible gains in 2012. Pandora nearly doubled their figures from 2011, and Spotify nearly quadrupled their sales.
Physical sales declined again in 2012, this time by 6.42%, but kept a majority market share at 53.7%. The sales of vinyl actually increased 70.1% over those in 2011 rising from 58,513 to 99,557. DVDs and music video sales were nearly identical to those in 2011. CD albums were responsible for the decrease, falling from 20,539,253 units in 2011 to 19,001,519 in 2012. The outlier in the statistics was CD singles, which managed to increase from 47,472 to 174,150 for a rise of 267%.
Danny Achurch, owner of Monster Music, a network of music teachers in Melbourne, Perth, and across Australia, is encouraged by the overall numbers, and believes that the music industry has survived what once appeared to be a severe threat to its entire business model: “This is some of the best news the Australian music industry has received in a long time. Between the economy, piracy, no help from radio, and the fact that today’s generation doesn’t buy nearly as many albums as the generations that preceded them, it looked like the Australian music industry is very close to being dead in the water.”
Achurch continued, “I am very heartened and encouraged by the latest numbers. It looks like the music industry is finally evolving enough to keep pace with the habits of current listeners. This has huge implications for the music industry as a whole, but it is especially good news for musicians who want to be paid what they are worth for writing and playing music.”
Achurch added, “It looked for all the world like piracy and file sharing were going to make it impossible for musicians to get paid for their work. Thankfully, the ARIA initiatives, along with the government’s cooperation, have helped the music business get back on its feet.”
Achurch concluded, “Finally, after three years, it’s a great time to be a musician again.”
Monster Music is a network of music teachers in Australia. For guitar, piano, or singing lessons in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, and across Australia, call 08 9335 8881 or visit their website: http://www.monstermusic.com.au/.
When the numbers for 2012 were tabulated, the Australian music industry finally got the news they have been waiting for the last three years: sales are finally up. According to a report from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), Australia now has the sixth biggest music market in the world, and grew for the first time since 2009.
According to ARIA figures, Australians spent $398.1 million on music in 2012 for a 4% gain over 2011. While physical music sales decreased slightly, digital music sales came through in a big way. Not only did people buy more digital products, but digital streaming services, such as Pandora, Deezer, and Spotify, made a significant impact on the market.
In 2012, digital products accounted for more than 46% of Australian music sales. This represents a 25.3% increase over 2011, when digital products accounted for 36.7% of sales. In 2012, Australians purchased 110,419,156 digital tracks, which is nearly twice that of 2011. Digital streaming companies made incredible gains in 2012. Pandora nearly doubled their figures from 2011, and Spotify nearly quadrupled their sales.
Physical sales declined again in 2012, this time by 6.42%, but kept a majority market share at 53.7%. The sales of vinyl actually increased 70.1% over those in 2011 rising from 58,513 to 99,557. DVDs and music video sales were nearly identical to those in 2011. CD albums were responsible for the decrease, falling from 20,539,253 units in 2011 to 19,001,519 in 2012. The outlier in the statistics was CD singles, which managed to increase from 47,472 to 174,150 for a rise of 267%.
Danny Achurch, owner of Monster Music, a network of music teachers in Melbourne, Perth, and across Australia, is encouraged by the overall numbers, and believes that the music industry has survived what once appeared to be a severe threat to its entire business model: “This is some of the best news the Australian music industry has received in a long time. Between the economy, piracy, no help from radio, and the fact that today’s generation doesn’t buy nearly as many albums as the generations that preceded them, it looked like the Australian music industry is very close to being dead in the water.”
Achurch continued, “I am very heartened and encouraged by the latest numbers. It looks like the music industry is finally evolving enough to keep pace with the habits of current listeners. This has huge implications for the music industry as a whole, but it is especially good news for musicians who want to be paid what they are worth for writing and playing music.”
Achurch added, “It looked for all the world like piracy and file sharing were going to make it impossible for musicians to get paid for their work. Thankfully, the ARIA initiatives, along with the government’s cooperation, have helped the music business get back on its feet.”
Achurch concluded, “Finally, after three years, it’s a great time to be a musician again.”
Monster Music is a network of music teachers in Australia. For guitar, piano, or singing lessons in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, and across Australia, call 08 9335 8881 or visit their website: http://www.monstermusic.com.au/.