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# Global Digital Music Market Expected To Grow 15% Annually
- URL: https://www.hypebot.com/global-digital-music-market-expected-to-grow-15-each-year/
- Published: 2012-08-29T13:20:00.000Z
- Updated: 2012-08-29T13:20:00.000Z
- Description: According to the global analyst firm Ovum, the global digital music market is expected to grow at 15% annually, reaching nearly $22.5 billion by 2017. Subscription services are said to. Continue reading [https://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2012/08/global-digital-music-market-expected-to-grow-15-each-yea
- Author: admin
- Tags: Indie Music, Major Labels, Streaming, Vinyl, Cassettes & Retail, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-01-21 10:49

[![Digital-Music](http://hypebot.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b36c69e2017c3189d2cf970b-150wi "Digital-Music")](http://hypebot.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b36c69e2017c3189d2cf970b-popup?ref=hypebot.com)

According to the  
global analyst firm [Ovum](http://ovum.com/section/home/?ref=hypebot.com), the **global digital**  
**music market is expected to grow at 15% annually**, reaching nearly $22.5  
billion by 2017\. Subscription services are said to be in large part responsible  
for the growing revenues, predicted to show a compound annual growth rate  
(CAGR) of 46%, stemming from bundling partnerships with  
service providers.

  
Ovum also  
expects to see high digital music growth in most regions across the globe, with exceptions being North America and Europe, where mobile music is expected  
to actually *decline* by 5-7% (although this excludes unlicensed, non-music, and  
mobile subscriptions).

“The decline in  
the growth rate of mobile music from previous forecasts is mainly due to the  
underperformance of ringback tones, the dominance of free ad-supported music,  
and data costs that are making over-the-air (OTA) mobile music less appealing  
to consumers," said Ovum’s consumer telecoms analyst Mark Little.

Mobile music’s  
decline comes as no surprise really, especially in western countries where more  
people own smartphones and utilize subscription-based music services. However,  
Ovum reports that telecommunications companies are helping to drive  
subscription growth with more mobile music bundles – pointing to significant  
growth in South & Central America, which have each seen over a 50% compound  
annual growth rate.

“In Asia  
Pacific, growth created by consumers migrating to subscription services such as  
Lismo Unlimited from KKBOX in Japan will result in a regional CAGR of 44%,”  
added Ovum’s Mark Little. “With Spotify landing in the US, joining Rhapsody,  
Sony Music Unlimited, Rdio and MOG, such brands are helping reinvigorate  
on-demand subscriptions, and we estimate a 40% CAGR over the forecast  
period.”

Ovum concludes  
that the main driver of digital music in the forecast period will be  
subscriptions, due to it being “a format that can be easily bundled by service  
providers, as well as offered directly, resulting in increased penetration of  
subscriptions around the world”.

**More:** [Overall Recorded Music Sales Expected To Decline This Year](https://www.hypebot.com/overall-recorded-music-sales-expected-to-decline-by-2013-chart/)  
[\[CHART\]](https://www.hypebot.com/overall-recorded-music-sales-expected-to-decline-by-2013-chart/)

—

***Hisham Dahud*** *is a Senior Analyst for Hypebot.com. Additionally, he is the head of Business Development for [Fame House](http://famehouse.net/?ref=hypebot.com) and an [independent musician](https://soundcloud.com/hishamdahud?ref=hypebot.com). Follow him on Twitter: [@HishamDahud](http://twitter.com/hishamdahud?ref=hypebot.com)*