Editing Streaming media (section)

=== Music streaming platforms ===
{{Main|Music streaming service}}
[[File:Music streaming platform use vs music piracy rates in U.S.png|thumb|As music streaming platforms have become more prevalent in the US, music piracy rates have fallen. Piracy rates are calculated as a function of US total population.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dima.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/DiMA-Streaming-Forward-Report.pdf|title=Digital Media Association Annual Report|date=March 2018|access-date=11 March 2019|archive-date=10 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181210195836/https://dima.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/DiMA-Streaming-Forward-Report.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>]]

Although music streaming is no longer a freely replicable public good, streaming platforms such as [[Spotify]], [[Deezer]], [[Apple Music]], [[SoundCloud]], [[YouTube Music]], and [[Amazon Music]] have shifted music streaming to a [[Club good|club-type good]]. While some platforms, most notably Spotify, give customers access to a [[freemium]] service that enables the use of limited features for exposure to advertisements, most companies operate under a premium subscription model.<ref>{{cite news |title=Battle of the Streaming Services: Which Is the Best Premium Video Service? |url=https://www.gadgets360.com/internet/features/best-streaming-service-app-tv-movies-india-price-netflix-amazon-prime-disney-plus-hotstar-google-apple-2223556 |access-date=11 May 2020 |work=NDTV Gadgets 360 |language=en |archive-date=17 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220617065514/https://gadgets360.com/internet/features/best-streaming-service-app-tv-movies-india-price-netflix-amazon-prime-disney-plus-hotstar-google-apple-2223556 |url-status=live }}</ref> Under such circumstances, music streaming is financially excludable, requiring that customers pay a monthly fee for access to a music library, but non-rival, since one customer's use does not impair another's.

An article written by the [[New York Times]] in 2021 states that "streaming saved music." This is because it provided monthly revenue. Especially Spotify offers its free platform, but you can pay for their premium to get music ad-free.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-03-22 |title=Streaming Saved Music. Artists Hate It. (Published 2021) |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/22/technology/streaming-music-economics.html |access-date=2024-12-09 |language=en |last1=Ovide |first1=Shira }}</ref> This allows access for people to stream music anywhere from their devices not having to rely on CDs anymore.

There is competition between services similar but lesser to the streaming wars for video media. {{as of|2019}}, Spotify has over 207&nbsp;million users in 78 countries,<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 February 2024 |title=Decoding Artist Compensation: Streaming 2024 |url=https://mariahpedia.com/decoding-artist-compensation-streaming-2024/}}</ref> {{as of|2018}}, Apple Music has about 60&nbsp;million, and SoundCloud has 175&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2018/05/25/the-top-10-streaming-music-services-by-number-of-users/|title=The Top 10 Streaming Music Services By Number Of Users|last=McIntyre|first=Hugh|website=Forbes|access-date=11 March 2019|archive-date=8 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191108105345/https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2018/05/25/the-top-10-streaming-music-services-by-number-of-users/|url-status=live}}</ref> All platforms provide varying degrees of accessibility. Apple Music and Prime Music only offer their services for paid subscribers, whereas Spotify and SoundCloud offer freemium and premium services. Napster, owned by Rhapsody since 2011, has resurfaced as a music streaming platform offering subscription-based services to over 4.5&nbsp;million users {{as of|January 2017|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2018/08/21/realnetworks-napster-profitable/|title=Napster Proves That Streaming Music Can Be Profitable|date=22 August 2018|website=Digital Music News|access-date=11 March 2019|archive-date=1 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200301050307/https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2018/08/21/realnetworks-napster-profitable/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the evolving music streaming landscape, competition among platforms is shaped by various factors, including royalty rates, exclusive content, and market expansion strategies. A notable development occurred in January 2025, when Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify announced a new multi-year agreement. This partnership aims to enhance opportunities for artists and consumers through innovative subscription tiers and an enriched audio-visual catalog.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oganesyan |first=Natalie |date=2025-01-26 |title=Spotify, Universal Music Group Strike Multi-Year Deal |url=https://deadline.com/2025/01/spotify-universal-music-group-deal-1236268625/ |access-date=2025-01-27 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref>

The music industry's response to music streaming was initially negative. Along with music piracy, streaming services disrupted the market and contributed to the fall in US revenue from $14.6&nbsp;billion in 1999 to $6.3&nbsp;billion in 2009. CDs and single-track downloads were not selling because content was freely available on the Internet. By 2018, however, music streaming revenue exceeded that of traditional revenue streams (e.g. record sales, album sales, downloads).<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.ifpi.org/downloads/GMR2018.pdf|title=Global Music Report 2018: Annual State of the Industry|year=2017|work=GMR|access-date=12 March 2019|archive-date=9 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200709091121/https://www.ifpi.org/downloads/GMR2018.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Streaming revenue is now one of the largest driving forces behind the growth in the music industry.