The State of the Music Publishing Nation

This blog highlights some key points from MIDiA’s latest flagship report, the State of the Music Publishing Nation.

Now that streaming is settling into its role as the de-facto mode of consumption (contributing to 50% of music industry revenues last year), the acceleration of publishing growth is becoming more apparent, with increased growth rates for the past three years. Music publishing therefore now stands at a crossroads where speculation around the market’s potential has reached fever pitch. With the scarce number of meaningful publishing assets split between a limited number of parties these companies now have the opportunity to utilise market dynamics to generate significant value.

The independent sector has gained the most market share from streaming

All major labels’ publishing arms and the independent sector grew their publishing revenue in 2018 in the afterglow of streaming’s rise to nearly 50% of total revenue in recorded music. This report reveals how the publishing sector performs alongside the wider music industry and the relative impacts on the independents versus the major labels.

Mergers and acquisitions continue in music publishing

Music publishing mergers and acquisitions have boomed in recent years, invigorated by streaming’s user growth and the multitude of revenue options becoming available outside of music sales. This has resulted in both significant opportunities and risks for the sector and those looking to participate in it, as highlighted in depth in this report.

The continued roles of broadcast and their impact on publishing revenue

The shift from sales to streaming is naturally having an impact on the sources of music publishing revenue. Both mechanical revenues and performance revenues have changed dramatically since 2012. Broadcast TV and radio have enabled live performances to remain a source of revenue, but as streaming chips away at these distributions, this opportunity will constrict. Sync growth, on the other hand, has a number of opportunities. This report deep dives into these evolving revenues streams and the overall opportunities opening up to music publishing as a result.

Global music trends will necessitate a change in approach

Western digital growth, is primarily driven by streaming subscriptions, i.e., monetising consumption. However, in many Asian markets the focus is on monetising fandom, as such music publishers would be well placed take a multi-regional approach to optimising revenue growth opportunities as they balance a range of differing consumption paradigms.

Publishing rights and streaming revenue dynamics

International songwriter royalty administration alongside the multiplicity of songwriters per song are dynamics which will come under increasing tension as publishing both grows in revenue terms and evolves alongside the wider digital landscape. This report will provide an overview do the current landscape and take a look at how they will play out going forwards.

Music publishing is locked firmly in growth mode and its potential is only further enlivened by the interest from the financial community. However, as this report makes clear the publishing landscape remains both complex and subject to increasing internal tensions as it evolves into a digitally-led industry.