Streaming music hits high note in Germany

Income from subscription- and advertising- funded streaming services rose to reach €18 million in the first six months of 2012, the German music industry association BVMI said on Wednesday.

“Music streaming is one of the fastest-growing use trends in the music world at the moment,” said BVMI manager Florian Drücke.

The biggest growth in turnover could be seen in subscriptions to streaming sites, which were up by nearly 50 percent to €15.1 million in the first half of the year.

Streaming accounted for around three percent of the entire music market in the first half of 2012, and nearly 13 percent of the turnover generated by digital sales.

Drücke also said that one in five Germans streamed music, and that the number of legal audio streaming services in Germany had increased to 12 since the end of 2011.

“Streaming has the potential in the mid-term to become one of the most important columns in the digital music business,” he said.

The entire music market turned over €644 million in the first half of the year in Germany, around the same as the first half of last year, the BVMI said.

A sharp decline in sales of physical products was counterbalanced by a strong growth in digital sales.

DAPD/The Local/hc