Record sales slump again

CMU Daily reports that global record sales were down by 8.4%, or another $1.45 billion, in 2010 according to new statistics from the International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry (IFPI). Total global record industry sales were $15.9 billion. Digital sales continued to grow, albeit at a more modest pace than a few years back, and now account for 29% of recorded music sales. The two biggest recorded music markets, the US and Japan, were particularly hard hit again, accounting for 57% of that $1.45 billion decline. The UK, which has been more resilient than most markets in terms of the decline of CD sales, also had a bad year, and as a result lost its position as the third biggest music market to Germany. Only India, Mexico and South Korea saw year-on-year record sales increases. There was also bad news from PRS For Music, who revealed that the total royalties they collected for songwriters and music publishers fell by 1% last year, the first time the total royalties collected by the collecting society has gone down on the previous year.