2014 in Music

2014There’s nothing so constant as change. It’s been widely noted that without Taylor’s swift save, 2014 came close to being the industry’s first year on record without a platinum…record. Fellow country darling Jason Aldean subsequently reminded us of platinum possibility. Meanwhile, Swift is responsible for a mind-blowing 22% of music sales in 2014. Alongside, this past year saw listeners become increasingly smitten with an unexpected collection of gentle and positive artists, now household names: Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran, Pharrell Williams. We’ve been reminded again of the universal joy and connection that music will always bring us—whether we’re tapping a screen, or dropping a needle. A year which brought such chaos to many corners of the globe also saw the song “Happy” reach more ears than any other single.

While challenges still face the industry, they continue to be met with a larger and more creative arsenal of responses. Artists whose releases would in previous years been predicted moneymaking sure things, are now armed out of the gate with Barnum & Bailey style non-traditional marketing blitzes: From U2’s regretted “the i is for invasive” iTunes stunt, to Beyonce’s surprise music video releases, the superstars are not going quietly into that dark night. Necessity is the mother of invention, and the post-internet world is the mother of some creative marketing workarounds when it comes to eeking out exposure and record sales. How’s this for a changing of the guard? Budweiser retired their long-standing synonymous spokes-Clydesdales in favor of Jay Z.

In predictable tandem with the comparative sputtering of record sales, streaming services like Spotify are booming. Cementing further validation of this evolving era was Apple’s purchase of Beats by Dr. Dre, at a cool $3 billion. James Donio, President of the Music Business Association, shared his thoughts on the state of affairs: “ It is abundantly clear that streaming will continue to gain traction next year as it tallies more and more users around the world,” noting Billboard’s and Nielsen’s decision to include streaming numbers and digital downloads in their calculations for the Billboard 200 chart. “There is no doubt that the heightened transition from a unit-based to an access-based marketplace will be one of the most significant outcomes of 2014,” Donio concluded. It bodes well for the future, the extent to which industry metrics continue to adapt to accurately reflect consumer behavior. While there is no question that the industry’s moneymaking model has changed, its resilience remains inspiring.

Play MPE® continues to witness and enjoy this resilience first hand. We’re thrilled to report to our family of customers that it’s been a banner year. We distributed more than 28,000 releases with more than 85,000 tracks to more than 15 million destinations worldwide– up high! To boot, Play MPE® has been used for digital distribution in more than 50 countries and territories, including USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, UK, Ireland, most of the continental Europe, Middle East and Japan. (Whew!) We raise a toast to our partners and clients! Our plan for world domination is nearly complete! OK, OK, we’ll settle (for now) for our stripes as the industry’s favorite choice in digital delivery.

Also on the industry’s side: time’s inevitable passage means what once was old is new again. Tweens everywhere are discovering the warm, majestic appeal of vinyl as well as the previously foreign notion of actually holding music in one’s hands. The Wall Street Journal reported LP sales surged 49 percent this year and that factories are on overdrive to keep up, USB equipped turn-tables are hipster necessities…and reasonably priced. In 2015, there is room once again for paper liner notes alongside blog posts. Our collective on-demand, instant gratification nature still allows for the charms of our parents’ generations, and that’s a good thing across the board.

We’ve been trained for immediacy, and the industry’s technology corners are heeding that call, from the consumer success of Spotify and Beats to the consistent appeal and use of Play MPE®’s player. Even with all the now and future talk, there remains plenty of space for placing the past on a pedestal. And, in the end…This year saw Beatles fans get emotional, reminiscing about the fab four first stepping on American soil 50 years ago.

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