A new global report from the Worldwide Independent Network (WIN) has found the independent label sector to be the fastest growing in the industry, outperforming major labels.
The 2018 Wintel Worldwide Independent Market Report reveals independent labels had an annual revenue of $6.9bn in 2017, which is an 11.3% increase from $6.2bn the year previous.
The increase sees the independent section outperform the overall music market, which had a 10.2% rise last year.
Independent labels also received an increase in market share, shifting from 38.4% in 2016 to 39.9% in 2017 with their growth outpacing major labels.
Part of that growth is due to a rapid increase in streaming revenue, with the indie sector seeing a rise of 46% last year.
The burgeoning scene also saw a high retention rate, with 77% of artists across the globe renewing contracts with indie labels, with 89% of Australian artists renewing their contracts.
South Korea proved to have the strongest independent scene, with 83% of their market consisting of indie labels and 17% going to the majors, while majors had a market share of 67% in Australia in 2017.
“2017 established the highest market share for the sector since the early nineties when scores of independent companies were acquired and removed from the indie sector,” WIN CEO Alison Wenham said.
“Increasing from around 20% in 1998 to 39.9% in 2017, during the most turbulent period of the industry’s history, is an astonishing achievement.
“It has been another challenging twelve months for our industry on a number of levels but we have emerged with powerful new legislation to protect our interests, fantastic growth in some unexpected territories and increasing support from music fans who have continued to enjoy and engage with the amazing music coming out of the worldwide independent community.”
Whereas other reports use distribution as measurement criteria, WINTEL maps the global market using copyright ownership.
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