UK music consumption rose by around four percent in 2015, with music streaming driving growth to reach a retail value of £1.1bn, new figures have revealed.
Findings released by the BPI, based on Official Charts Company data, showed that a record 26.8bn songs were streamed in 2015, accounting for more than a fifth of all music listened to over the 12-month period.
Audio streaming grew by 82 percent in volume while vinyl sales reached 2.1m, representing a 21-year high.
According to BPI analysis, a total of 121.6m albums were either purchased on physical format, digitally downloaded or consumed via streaming by UK music fans in 2015 - up on 117.2m in 2014.
Geoff Taylor, BPI and BRIT Awards chief executive, said: ‘The soaring popularity of music streaming and the burgeoning vinyl revival mean that UK music consumption rose again in 2015. Services such as Spotify and Apple Music are going mainstream as more people discover how wonderful it is to have all the music in the world to listen to, whenever and wherever you want. Millions of fans also continue to build treasured collections of favourite albums on vinyl, CD or downloads.
‘Yet again it’s UK artists who are driving this growth and inspiring the fans - at home and across the planet - with their award-winning song-writing and performances, whether it’s global icons such as Adele, Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and One Direction, or recent British breakthroughs and newcomers like Jess Glynne, Little Mix and James Bay.’
As previously reported, Adele’s 25 sold 2.5m copies in the UK (and seven million in the US) in just six weeks to become 2015’s fastest and biggest global seller.
Findings released by the BPI, based on Official Charts Company data, showed that a record 26.8bn songs were streamed in 2015, accounting for more than a fifth of all music listened to over the 12-month period.
Audio streaming grew by 82 percent in volume while vinyl sales reached 2.1m, representing a 21-year high.
According to BPI analysis, a total of 121.6m albums were either purchased on physical format, digitally downloaded or consumed via streaming by UK music fans in 2015 - up on 117.2m in 2014.
Geoff Taylor, BPI and BRIT Awards chief executive, said: ‘The soaring popularity of music streaming and the burgeoning vinyl revival mean that UK music consumption rose again in 2015. Services such as Spotify and Apple Music are going mainstream as more people discover how wonderful it is to have all the music in the world to listen to, whenever and wherever you want. Millions of fans also continue to build treasured collections of favourite albums on vinyl, CD or downloads.
‘Yet again it’s UK artists who are driving this growth and inspiring the fans - at home and across the planet - with their award-winning song-writing and performances, whether it’s global icons such as Adele, Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and One Direction, or recent British breakthroughs and newcomers like Jess Glynne, Little Mix and James Bay.’
As previously reported, Adele’s 25 sold 2.5m copies in the UK (and seven million in the US) in just six weeks to become 2015’s fastest and biggest global seller.
