IMPF (Independent Music Publishers International Forum) has published the fourth edition of its Global Market View for the sector.
Sponsored by Musixmatch, the report looks at the independent music publishing industry and its international impact and position.
The latest report covers 2022, which is the last full year of data available. The report also cites case studies and trends from 2023 for France, Canada, India, Germany, and the USA.
According to the IMPF study, the independent music publishing sector grew by 16.8% in value year-on-year to €2.43 billion in 2022, although there was a slight drop in market share from 27.1% to 26.7%.
The figure represents revenues that go through the network of music publishers around the world, and does not include monies paid to songwriters and composers directly from the collective management system.
The independent music publishing sector taken as a whole remains bigger than the biggest music publishing company, Sony Music Publishing, based on the report’s findings from multiple datasets.
Revenues for the independent music publishing sector doubled in the five years up to 2022, from €1.25 billion to €2.43 billion.
Estimates for 2023 suggest that the growth rate of the publishing sector is going to be at minimum 8-12%, and may be more depending on the state of the sync market after the Hollywood strikes. In addition, the major video streaming platforms have announced a slowing down of their investment in new content, which will have an impact on the sync business.
Revenues are set to be positively impacted by the rise in subscription rates implemented during the year by all the major streaming services.
It is important to acknowledge independent music publishers as the early champions of emerging creators
Annette Barrett
The report has been issued today (April 25) at the organisation’s 2024 General Assemblies; a two-day event hosted by IMPF in Dublin. The Assemblies featured a number of keynote speakers and panel discussions on topics including generative AI and copyright; independent publishers and independent labels working together; video games and music; diversity and inclusion in the music business; music supervision; CLIP, the platform to increase knowledge of creators’ rights; and the new dot music domain.
Annette Barrett, Reservoir Music, and president of IMPF (pictured), said: “It’s a pleasure to show the continued growth of our sector and the ongoing dominance of the independent music publishing community in terms of market share. It is, however, also important to acknowledge independent music publishers as the early champions of emerging creators, and as their first professional affiliates. Wherever we operate, we are usually the strongest supporters of local talent covering a wide range of musical genres, including those at the fringes that don’t necessarily make the headlines or the big numbers. Our latest Global Market View shines a light on all these facets of our thriving community.”
Aman Khullar, general counsel, Musixmatch, said: “Musixmatch is a proud supporter of the independent music publishing community. The latest edition of the IMPF report shows the importance of independent music to the music ecosystem in all its forms including the growing importance of lyrics to music and other digital services.
“We enjoy working with independent music publishers on a daily basis to help distribute their lyrics and other data and drive fair value for their rights in the global market. Our relationship with independent publishers is central to our business, and the IMPF’s support has been crucial to help facilitate two-way conversations with our independent publisher partners. We look forward to working together in the future.”
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