The Porta Nuova business district of Milan, Italy. Photo Credit: Daniel Case
Italian recorded music industry revenue increased by about 11% year over year (YoY) during 2022, per newly released data from the Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana (FIMI).
FIMI unveiled the performance specifics associated with the Italian music industry today, via a concise release that was emailed to DMN. Moreover, the IFPI this morning shed light upon the global industry’s 2022 showing, disclosing in the corresponding report that Brazil had replaced Italy as one of the top-10 music markets.
Nevertheless, the aforesaid 11.1% Italian music industry growth outpaced the international average, which the IFPI placed at about 9.2%. The 11.1% boost bumped Italy’s recorded music revenue past the €370 million mark ($398.47 million at the present exchange rate), the Milan-headquartered entity indicated, as streaming income improved by 17.7% from 2021 (compared to 11.5% global growth) to approximately €246.79 million ($265.80 million).
Behind the streaming revenue figure, FIMI identified a 13.7% uptick in subscription income and a 36.2% hike on the ad-supported side, “including revenues from social media such as Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.” Of course, an ongoing licensing dispute between Meta and the Italian Society of Authors and Publishers – which saw Meta pull down a number of works earlier in March – didn’t impact the 2022 data but is certainly affecting 2023’s totals.
Notwithstanding this streaming surge and an 11.7% increase in vinyl revenue, FIMI relayed that the Italian music industry had suffered a 2.2% income dip on the physical side. Even so, the entity communicated that Italy boasted the world’s eighth-largest physical market in 2022.
Next, FIMI attributed €13 million ($14 million) in sync revenue to the Italian music industry for 2022 (up 26.5%) and, citing IFPI data, noted that over half of Italy’s residents between the ages of 16 and 24 had used “paid audio streaming services” last year.
Finally, the entity took the opportunity to tout the commercial success of homegrown acts, as each of the European nation’s top-10 albums for 2022 was released by an Italy-based artist. Meanwhile, 558 albums (up 79 from 2021), released by a total of 336 acts (a year-over-year jump of 34), are said to have racked up 10 million or more streams apiece in Italy during the 12-month stretch.
Addressing the stats and the state of the Italian music industry, FIMI CEO Enzo Mazza said: “The success of Italian music, the strong affirmation of a new generation of artists who represent the great change that has taken place in the sector, is also the result of the heavy investments the recording industry made over the years, even during the difficult phase of the pandemic.
“In the last ten years, the average age of the artists in the top ten has dropped by 35%, highlighting a generational turnover that no other cultural sector has been able to accomplish in our country,” concluded the 25-year FIMI head Mazza.