Revenue distribution and transformation in the music streaming value chain

While music rights holders are collectively being remunerated more than ever before, the (re)distribution of revenue in the music streaming value chain remains extremely uneven and opaque. When the COVID-19 pandemic curtailed live performance opportunities, it became clear that despite the success of music streaming, the great majority of artists remain unable to rely on digital revenues alone to sustain their livelihoods. This policy brief provides a critical overview of the challenges and opportunities posed by different revenue-sharing systems for the music sector’s main stakeholders, including artists, composers, labels, and distributors, while also identifying how these systems, can have an impact on the diversity of cultural expressions more generally. Building upon secondary research and interviews conducted with a variety of industry experts, it sheds light on existing initiatives which serve to improve diversity in the sector, summarise the main trends observed, and offers perspectives to ensure that the industry not only operates in a sustainable manner, but that it is ultimately representative of all those who desire to participate in it.