RIAA: CD Shipments Down 17.5%; Digital 23% of Revenues

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 28, 2008 - 9:56am.

Los Angeles - While U.S. CD shipments were down 17.5% in 2007, digital formats now account for 23% of U.S. recording revenues, up from 16.1% in 2006 and 9% in 2005, according to year-end shipment data calculated by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). A total of 809.9 million digital song downloads were sold in 2007, a 38% increase from 2006, along with 42.5 million digital albums, up 54% from the prior year.

Mobile music shipments, which includes master ringtones, ringback tones, music videos, full-length song downloads and other content, were up 14.6% in 2007, compared with an 85% increase between 2005-2006.

When combined, total U.S. digital and physical shipments were up 11.6% in 2007, although the total retail value of these shipments was down 11.8% from 2006.

Published in DMW Daily, April 28, 2008

Next story: Warner Bros. to Launch Video Sites TheWB.com, KidsWB.com

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Comments

Struggling?

Submitted by Steven Clough (not verified) on April 28, 2008 - 3:43pm.

So many people cry about the entertainment industry struggling right now. While CD sales might be down, other forms of media sales (primarily digital) are way up. The digital age has lead to a power shift. Where entertainment companies once dictated what media people consumed, people now have the tools to decide this for themselves. The question is, 'how long will it take the entertainment industry to figure these changes out.' (Sort of how they tried to shut down Napster before considering how much money they could have made from it...oops!) With that said, its a great day to be an independent musician :)

23% digital. I'm almost

Submitted by Marvin Marks (not verified) on April 28, 2008 - 7:01pm.

23% digital. I'm almost surprised the number isn't even higher. I think it'll be a majority of the market within 5 years for sure. Probably sooner.