After having recorded its fourth consecutive year of growth in 2022, resulting in $7.3 billion in total revenues and a yearly growth rate of 7.54%, the European recorded music market further strengthens its position in the global music scene in 2023, with all of its core territories noting revenue growth during the first six months of the year.
In Europe, general trends include the complete dominance of local repertoire, where local artists and languages dominate the charts in almost every region. Streaming remains the key driver for the European recorded music markets, while the physical segment (CD and vinyl sales) has experienced growth only in certain countries.
On the ANote Music Platform, you have the opportunity to diversify your portfolio with the royalty interests of music catalogues coming from all over the world, including some of the key markets in Europe. Read this article for a detailed breakdown of the European recorded music industry’s performance during the first six months of 2023.
1. Germany’s recorded music industry grows by 6.6%
Germany, the world’s fourth largest recorded music industry, continues to show solid growth in 2023. According to the latest figures provided by the German labels body (BVMI), the German recorded music industry grew by 6.6% year-over-year and generated a total of 1.06 billion euro in the first half of 2023, with streaming driving the majority of the growth and accounting for 75.7% of the revenues.
In the first six months of 2023, the physical segment (comprising CDs, vinyl, DVDs, and singles) experienced a modest decline of -0.8% year-over-year but still continues to be nearly one-fifth (18.0%) of Germany's total recorded music revenue. In contrast, the digital segment (including audio streaming, video streaming and downloads) represents 82% of the overall turnover and witnessed a year-over-year growth of 8.4%.
Figure 1: German recorded music revenues (H1 2023)
Source: BVMI, 2023
2. Italian recorded music industry grows by 14.2%
Are you among the investors in one of the Italian music catalogues available on ANote Music? There’s exciting news for you! In the first semester of 2023, the Italian recorded music market experienced double-digit growth, reaching a total of 175 million euro in revenues (+14.2% year-over-year). In a landscape dominated by streaming, which currently accounts for 81% of total revenues and grew by 16% during H1 2023, physical revenues also grew (+9.4% year over year). The data reveals that this growth has mainly been driven by local incentives such as the 18app Bonus Cultura program (which grants every Italian that turns 18 a €500 subsidy to spend on cultural items), which generated already over 8 million euro in additional revenues for the Italian recorded music industry by the end of June 2023.
One of the key highlights from the latest figures provided by the Italian music industry body (FIMI) is the absolute dominance of local repertoire in the Top 10 best-selling albums in H1 2023.
Figure 2: Italian recorded music revenues (H1 2023)
Source: FIMI, 2023
3. French recorded music industry grows by 9.4%
The French recorded music industry - which according to the latest IFPI Global Music Report, ranked as the 6th largest recorded music market in the world in 2022 - paints a similarly positive picture to the Italian market. According to the latest figures released by the French music industry body (SNEP), recorded music revenues grew by 9.4% year-over-year in the first half of 2023, reaching a total of 397 million euro.
Both physical and digital sales (excluding downloads) experienced growth during the first half of the year. With 309 million euro in revenues, the digital segment grew by 10% year-over-year and now accounts for 77% of the total recorded music revenues — an increase of 6 percentage points over two years — with almost 98% of this segment’s turnover generated by streaming alone. On the other hand, the physical segment grew by 7.3% year-over-year and reached a total of 89 million euro, with CD and vinyl nearly having equal sales, each accounting for slightly above 10% of total revenues.
Similar to the Italian market, the local repertoire plays a predominant role among the best-selling albums, with 17 French productions in the Top 20 and nearly 75% of the Top 200 being French productions in the first six months of 2023.
Figure 3: French recorded music revenues H1 2023 (EUR)
Source: SNEP, 2023
4. Poland's recorded music market grows +16.5% to PLN 298 million
The latest figures released by ZPAV (the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry) are a testament of the growth experienced by the Eastern European country, which during the first six months of 2023 recorded a double digit growth of 16.5% year-over-year, resulting in total revenues exceeding PLN 298 million (around 68 million euro at current exchange rates).
The primary driver of growth in the Polish recorded music market was the digital segment, which now accounts for over 80% of total revenues and experienced a 21% year over year growth in the first semester of 2023, reaching PLN 239 million. Within the digital segment, streaming further strengthened its position, representing 99.3% of digital sales. Physical sales remained similar to the previous year, with an increase of 0.8%, resulting in total revenues of PLN 59 million.
Similar to the Italian and French markets, the local repertoire dominates the album charts, with 8 out of the top 10 best-selling albums in H1 2023 featuring Polish artists.
Figure 4: Polish recorded music revenues H1 2023
Source: ZPAV, 2023
5. Rest of Europe: Spain grows by 11.5% while the U.K. consolidates itself as 2nd largest recorded music market in the world
Data from the rest of the European continent reveals growth in various countries. The Spanish recorded music market experienced a 11.5% growth in the first semester of 2023, reaching half-year revenues of 214.3 million euro, as reported in the latest data provided by Promusicae.
The United Kingdom, which holds the title of being the second-largest recorded music market globally, continued its growth trend for the eighth consecutive year in 2022, reaching £1.32 billion in total revenues (equivalent to 1.52 billion euro at current exchange rates) and marking a 4.7% year-over-year increase.
It’s fair to conclude that the European music industry is in good health, and general growth trends can be seen across the entire landscape. And it’s not only in Europe that the music industry is flourishing; noticeable progress is observed in other areas of the world. This positive trend resonates with the opportunities available on the ANote Music Platform, where you can buy and sell royalty interests of music catalogues worldwide, spanning regions like the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Poland, Sweden, and beyond.
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