// The ERA predicts paid streaming will overtake free streaming this year
// More people under 44 pay for music streaming services than use free accounts already
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More people under the age of 44 pay for music streaming services than use them for free, according to new research from the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA).
The ERA’s quarterly survey of 1500 people, which seeks to track shifts in how people purchase and access music, video and games, has found that the total number of people paying for streaming services could soon overtake those accessing the platforms for free.
According to the data, in November 2018 57.1 per cent of under 25s paid for music streaming platforms, compared to 45.7 per cent on those who use it for free.
This was also true in older age groups, with 25-44 year-olds and 35-44 year-olds also seeing more people pay for streaming.
For 45-55 year-olds and the over 55s this was not the case, with the latter seeing more than twice as many people access services for free than pay for them.
Across all age categories, the number of users paying for streaming increased in when compared with the same period last year, while free users declined in all age brackets under 45.
Overall more people still stream for free (21.5 per cent) rather than pay (20.6 per cent), however the ERA predicts that paid services could become the favourite this year.
“Streaming has made it fashionable to pay for music again,” ERA chief executive Kim Bailey said.
“What is all the more remarkable is that the likes of Spotify and YouTube also offer fantastic free services, funded by advertising.
“These figures suggest that music fans increasingly believe that the added features offered by paid-for services, and the curation which enables them to navigate literally millions of tracks, are definitely worth the money.
“Ten or 15 years ago popular opinion had it that it was all over for the music business and people would no longer pay for music. These figures are a striking vindication of the innovation and investment of digital services.”
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