Europe's recorded music market is at risk of falling behind other global regions unless regulators impose stronger protections for artists, creators and rights holders, according to a new report from international record label trade body IFPI.
In Europe, music sales grew to over $8 billion in 2023, accounting for more than a quarter of global revenue (28.1%) and maintaining the continent's long-standing position as the world's second largest region for recorded music sales behind from the US and Canada, according to IFPI data.
However, Europe's pre-eminence is under threat from other, faster-growing music markets, says IFPI's first report specifically focused on recorded music in the European Union, published on Tuesday (September 10th).
Last year, music sales among the 27 members of the European Union trade bloc — which the U.K. will leave in 2020 — rose 8.7 percent to 5.2 billion euros ($5.7 billion), IFPI says. While this places the EU below the US only in terms of total revenue, several other international markets are significantly outpacing its growth rate thanks to the widespread global adoption of music streaming services.
Examples cited by IFPI include China, which grew music sales by more than 25% to 1.3 billion euros ($1.4 billion) in 2023. Sub-Saharan Africa, up 25% to 85 million euros ($93 million dollars). Mexico, up 18% to 454 million euros ($500 million). and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), which rose 14% to €102 million ($112 million).
Although all these regions are growing from much lower bases than mature EU markets such as France and Germany – and all have a long way to go before they can overtake EU music sales – the IFPI said their rapid growth represents “warning signs” that the region is facing strong competition from its global competitors. Notably, some of these fast-growing music markets were virtually non-existent just a decade ago.
The report, titled 'Music in the EU: A Global Opportunity', comes three months after the European Parliament elections and ahead of the unveiling of the new European Commission, the EU's executive, which is expected to take place later this month.
The new group of Brussels politicians will be responsible for monitoring and enforcing EU legislation already passed, such as the Digital Services Act, the Digital Markets Act and the Artificial Intelligence Act, which affect the music business to varying degrees, in some cases significantly.
“The EU is a vital place for music,” said the IFPI CEO Victoria Oakley in a statement. “However, the data in this report shows us that other parts of the world are growing and growing fast, and the EU is at risk of falling behind.”
To ensure the EU music market remains competitive, Oakley called on European policymakers to provide “legal certainty and protection for music rights holders, supporting the development of responsible and ethical artificial intelligence and creating a competitive playing field in which to evolve today's dynamic music sector”.
“Today, European music faces great danger but also great opportunity,” continued Oakley. “How policymakers deal with these issues will help determine its future.”
An accompanying press release from the IFPI said its research sets out how policymakers can help “to ensure a positive future for music at a pivotal time for music in Europe” amid increasing global competition.
The report points out that, when adjusted for inflation, recorded music revenues in the EU last year were only 61% of what they were in 2001, the music industry's peak.
Specific areas where IFPI says policymakers can support creators and rights holders include the effective implementation of the EU's AI law, which was passed earlier this year, and compliance with existing intellectual property laws. of EU property that prevent the use of copyrighted works and music to train artificial intelligence systems. without prior consent. AI developers must also maintain and provide records of the material used to train and develop productive AI models that allow rights holders to exercise and enforce their rights, IFPI says.
When it comes to individual EU markets, the report highlights the continued strong performance of domestic acts in their home countries. In the 22 EU markets where the IFPI collects annual chart data, on average, 60% of the Top 10 were tracks by domestic artists in 2023, compared to only 47% in non-EU markets.
EU markets fared less well in terms of top 10 global chart exports, which were again dominated by US artists such as Miley Cyrus, SZA and Taylor Swift last year, although artists from Latin America and Central America mainly from Colombia and Puerto Rico, also played So.
