German rap superstar LUCIANO in the video for Frozen Tears.
The numbers are in. Germany’s record business generated revenues of $1 billion (€967 million) in the first six months of this year from physical music sales and streaming.
That total revenue figure of €967 million (on a retail basis) marked an increase of 5.5% compared to the same period last year for the world’s fourth largest recorded music market.
According to new figures, for H1 2022, published by German Music Industry Association (BVMI) today (August 11), Germany’s revenue haul was driven by audio streams.
Audio streaming grew 9.1% YoY in the first half of the year and now accounts for 73.3% of the recorded music market’s total revenues.
In the physical sector, which generated just under a fifth of total sales (19.8%), revenues from CDs declined by 6.5% YoY.
That decline has slowed significantly compared to the same period last year, however. At the mid-year point of 2021, CD sales had fallen 16.4% in Germany.
Meanwhile, vinyl record sales continued to climb. Revenues generated by the format grew 12.3% YoY. Vinyl now has a 6.2% share of the recorded music market in Germany.
Vinyl is now Germany’s third-largest recorded music revenue driver, generating almost half as much revenue as CDs in H1 2022 (12.8%).
Overall, Germany’s physical business currently generates just under a fifth of total recorded music revenues sales (19.8%).
BVMI reports that 80.2% of Germany’s recorded music revenues are now generated digitally, with downloads contributing just 2.4% of the total market (see below).
Last year, Germany’s record business revenues topped $2 billion (on a retail basis) for the second year in a row.
BVMI reported in March that the German market’s revenues from physical music sales and streaming generated a total of 1.96 billion euros (approximately $2.2bn), an increase of 10% year-over-year compared to 2020.
“Further growth in the first half of 2022 is very good news, considering the current situation.”
Dr. Florian Drücke, BVMI
Dr. Florian Drücke, Chairman & CEO of BVMI, said: “Further growth in the first half of 2022 is very good news, considering the current situation.
“At 5.5%, the curve is not pointing quite as steeply upwards as it did at the end of 2021 with a truly outstanding industry increase of 10% – however, the growing segments of audio streaming and vinyl continue to develop positively and the general trend towards digital music use, alongside the continued importance of the physical segment, remains unbroken.
“The consistent advancement of the entire format spectrum, digital and analogue, as well as the ever-new additional sources of revenue that our member companies develop for and with their artists, ensure stable dynamics, even in economically challenging times.”Music Business Worldwide
