5 Big Takeaways From IFPI’s Music Listening Report 2019

IFPI, the global recorded music trade organization, today released its Music Listening 2019 report, which surveys how music consumers 16-64 engage with recorded music across 21 countries. Here are 5 big takeaways.

The IFPI Music Listening report has been published in previous years under the title IFPI Music Consumer Insight Report.

5 IFPI Report Highlights

1. Podcasting is not cutting into music listening… yet.  In 2019, respondents typically spent 18 hours per week listening to music – up from 17.8 hours in 2018. This equates to about 2.6 hours – or the equivalent of listening to 52 three-minute songs – daily.  

2. 54% of all people 16 – 64 identify as ‘loving’ or being ‘fanatical’ about music. In a hopeful sign for the future, among 16-24-year-olds, this rises to 63%.

3. Adults are increasingly embracing audio streaming services.  64% of all respondents have accessed a music streaming service in the past month – up by  7% over last year. The highest rate of growth for engagement is in the 35-64-year-old age group, with 54% of that group accessing a music streaming service in the past month, up 8% since 2018.

4. YouTube still dominates music streaming with 77% of survey respondents using it for music in the past month. 

5. Copyright infringement is still a problem. 27% of all surveyed had used unlicensed methods to listen to or obtain music in the past month, while 23% used illegal stream-ripping services – the leading form of music piracy.

Frances Moore, chief executive of IFPI, said: 

“This year’s report tells an exciting story of how fans are increasingly engaging with music. At a time when multiple forms of media vie for fans’ attention, they are not only choosing to spend more of their time listening to – and engaging with – music but they are doing so in increasingly diverse ways.

“The enduring partnership between record companies and artists is the bedrock on which this growing, exciting global world of passionate music listeners is built. Record companies work with their artists to help connect them with fans around the world.      

“The report also highlights that the availability of music through unlicensed methods, or copyright infringement, remains a real threat to the music ecosystem. Practices such as stream ripping are still prevalent and return nothing to those who create and invest in music. We continue to coordinate worldwide action to address this.”

The full report is available at https://www.ifpi.org/downloads/Music-Listening-2019.pdf