U.K. MUSIC RETAIL RISES 9% 

Retail spending on music in the U.K. grew by 8.7% in 2021, according to preliminary figures from the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA). The increase was powered by subscription streaming services.

Marking a ninth successive year of growth, the number represents total expenditures of £1.677b. Spending on streaming rose 10.9% to £1.331b, or 79% of the total sales figure—more than the entire value of U.K. recorded-music sales as recently as 2018.

Vinyl album sales grew by 23.2% to reach £135.6m, 8% of the aggregate. That helped power overall physical growth of 7.3%, to £291.5m, offsetting a 3.9% dip in CD album sales (which now count for 9% of the total at £150.1m). Downloads saw the greatest decline, 23.8% to £55m, or 3.2% of total sales revenue.

Last year, music retail grew 6.8% to hit £1.55b. Streaming was up 15.5%.

ERA’s Kim Bayley attributed the continued growth to new releases as well as “innovation and investment” from streaming services. She also noted the “doggedness and resilience” of physical retailers, “led by the indies, who have driven the vinyl revival in the face of some initial skepticism.”

The U.K.’s entertainment market, which encompasses video and games as well as music, could break the £10b sales barrier this year, with revenues up nearly a quarter from the £9.716b registered in the last pre-pandemic year, 2019. Despite challenging circumstances, the sector still experienced year-over-year growth of 4.6% in 2021.