warner-music-group-wmg-650Is music streaming the new standard for consuming digital music? Well as it stands, it certainly looks like it could be, especially in the face of a downward trend when it comes to digital downloads. Warner Music appears to have embraced the idea of music streaming as the company’s streaming revenue was actually up by 74% over the last 12 months.

Speaking during the company’s earnings call, Warner’s CEO Stephen Cooper was quoted as saying, “As we have said before, streaming – and particularly the subscription model – more fully captures the true demand for music. In the streaming universe, consumption drives the economics — so the more that people listen to music, the better it is for our artists and our business.”

However Cooper also made sure to note that the reason the label has decided to take part in the freemium model and ad-supported tiers is because they hope that it will drive users to premium subscriptions. “We continue to believe that the long-term sustainability of the “freemium” model is predicated on high levels of conversion from ad-supported “free” to paid subscription.”

That being said, Cooper’s comments might not bode well for Apple who is rumored to be in talks with the labels to actually reduce the price of subscription fees. There are rumors which suggests that Apple could be looking to charge $5 for a Beats Music subscription, making it a very attractive option for listeners, although it might not be as financially attractive to the labels.

In the meantime there are some artists such as Taylor Swift who have criticized streaming services such as Spotify, claiming that the service does not fairly compensate musicians, writers, or producers.

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