Global value of music copyright surpasses cinema box office takings for first time ever

The global value of music copyright has surpassed the global cinema box office takings for the first time ever.

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The overall worldwide financial intake from the film industry has outmatched the total value of music publishing income since records began, but in 2023, a new report has demonstrated that the hierarchy has been reversed.

Will Page is the former chief economist with Spotify and PRS For Music and he has published a report that indicates that the total value from recorded music, publishing and royalties, as collected by Collective Management Organisations (CMOs), reached $45.5billion last year (£36billion), compared to a total cinema box office taking of $33.2billion (£26.4billion).

That puts music as 38 per cent more valuable than its movie counterpart, a sharp swing compared with a year as recent as 2019, where the cinema intake was 33 per cent ahead of music.

“If you had suggested when I first did this exercise in 2015 that music might overtake cinema, you would have been laughed out of the room,” said Page. “Back then, the silver screen towered over the likes of Spotify and Netflix”.

The report continues that music copyright has risen by 11 per cent per year since 2021, with Page suggesting that by next year, the figure could have doubled from 2014’s $25billion (£20billion).

“Make no mistake, it’s boom time,” Page said.

He also notes that vinyl sales are growing faster than streaming – with an increase of 13.4 per cent compared with streaming’s 10.4 per cent – while he also estimates that vinyl will soon be outselling CDs globally.

The report also notes that the split in distribution of music income remains constant, with 63 per cent going to labels and artists, while the remaining 37 per cent goes to songwriters, publishers and CMOs.

Page also points to the growing importance of the live performance of music, in comparison to licensing. “The value to CMOs of live performance now exceeds that of general licensing for public performance,” he said. “Songs sung on stage are now generating more royalties than those wallpapering the background of high streets and hotels.”

He also added that royalty income from broadcast and radio is now less than that of digital collection.

A similar report recently found that more songs are being released every day now than were released in the whole calendar year of 1989, with an estimated number of total music creators of 75.9million. That is expected to rise to 198.2million by 2030.