In 2016, listening to music using streaming models will have become a more important model for consuming music than ownership of albums, tracks and songs. A predicted surge in streaming music consumption in Asia will go a long way to drive this trend, but other regional markets are also steeply increasing. This forecasts ABI Research in a report that explores the developments in music consumption in the near future.

It is not just streaming replacing ownership, however. People are also increasingly storing the music they own in the cloud to be able to stream it from every location.

Analyst Aapo Markkanen of ABI Research says: “The number of [paying (ed.)] subscribers to mobile music streaming services is expected to approach 5.9 million by the end of this year. ABI Research believes that number will exceed 161 million subscribers in 2016, meaning a compound annual growth rate of nearly 95%. Sometime in 2012 the Asia-Pacific area will become the largest regional market for mobile music streaming.”

The study predicts that consumers will reap the greatest benefits of this development. Rights holders and sales platforms also benefit as streaming services offer an attractive alternative to pirated content. For artists, the consequences may be mixed. Earning a living from recorded music becomes harder, but reaching a global audience has never been easier.

These predictions are based on the assumption that access to music through these models will become cheaper. However, there is a big ‘if’ involved in this assumption, says practice director Neil Struther: “Forecasts of declining prices are based on the assumption that the rights-holders will lower their royalty demands. Record labels and collecting societies should not overplay their hands when it comes to royalty issues. If consumers do not have convenient and affordable legal alternatives, they will simply enjoy their music by other means.”