PARIS: Streaming became the primary source of income for composers and songwriters in 2022 and contributed to a remarkable increase in their earnings by more than a quarter to 10.83 billion euros ($11.44 billion), according to report released on Thursday.
The International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) revealed that digital royalty collections saw a robust growth of nearly 34%, reaching 4.2 billion euros in 2022. This surge can be attributed to a growing number of consumers opting for music and video subscription services.
After experiencing significant growth during the pandemic, streaming collections have now doubled compared to their pre-COVID levels. They now constitute 35% of the total income for music creators, surpassing earnings from TV and radio. Meanwhile, royalties from the live and public performance sector, encompassing concerts, exhibitions, and theatres, saw a substantial increase of 69.9%, reaching 2.68 billion euros in 2022. However, these earnings remained below the 2019 levels of approximately 7.9% due to the challenges faced during the pandemic.
The report also indicated that the live entertainment industry continued its recovery in 2023, driven by pent-up demand, and there is potential for it to surpass pre-pandemic levels. Nevertheless, it issued a caution about the outlook beyond 2023, expressing uncertainties related to consumer spending and the budget constraints on touring for artists.
Earlier this week, music-streaming leader Spotify reported a 26% increase in its monthly active users, totalling 574 million in the third quarter, exceeding both its own projections and analyst forecasts, which had estimated 565.7 million users.
Bjorn Ulvaeus, the President of CISAC and one of the founders of the Swedish music group ABBA, pointed out that artificial intelligence could influence the industry’s earnings in the coming years. He stressed the need for creators to engage with technology companies and policymakers at the highest level. CISAC, as a network of authors’ societies, represents the interests of more than four million creators across various artistic domains, including music, audio-visual, drama, literature, and visual arts.
