Art in Numbers Report 2021
The Covid-19 pandemic affected the music industry. Revenues for the music sector fell dramatically in the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, according to the report "Art in Numbers". The report also shows that copyright revenues in the music industry exceeded NOK 1 billion for the first time in 2021.
/ 21/12/2022 / Willy MartinsenThe Covid-19 pandemic affected the music industry. Revenues for the music sector fell dramatically in the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, according to the report "Art in Numbers". The report also shows that copyright revenues in the music industry exceeded NOK 1 billion for the first time in 2021.
"Art in Numbers" is an annual publication that presents revenue trends in the music, literature, visual arts and performing arts industries in Norway. The report is prepared by Rambøll on behalf of the Arts Council of Norway. TONO has been a contributor to the report since its inception in 2013.
The 2021 report, published on December 12, shows that the combined revenue of the four arts sectors was NOK 13,9 billion. Over the two pandemic years, these four sectors have experienced a decline in revenue of more than NOK 1,1 billion, or 8 percent.
The music industry's revenue in 2021 was NOK 3,3 billion, a decrease of 6 percent from 2020. Compared to the peak year of 2019, revenue in the music industry has fallen by 39 percent.
If we had assumed an expected normal development from 2019 of 5 percent annual growth, the total revenues in the music industry in 2021 would have been more than NOK 6 billion, almost NOK 2,7 billion higher than the actual revenues. The reduced concert and export revenues thus gave the Norwegian music industry a loss in revenues of NOK 4,9 billion.
Copyright revenues are revenues collected by TONO and other collective management organizations in Norway. The report shows that total copyright revenues in the Norwegian music industry in 2021 exceeded NOK 1 billion for the first time, up 14 percent from 2020.
The major changes in copyright revenues over the past couple of years have been in broadcasting, public performances, and streaming and downloading. Copyright revenues from broadcasting increased by a third during the pandemic years, while public performances from concerts and background music fell by a third.
Streaming represented the largest growth in recent years, from 62 million in 2012 to 228 million in 2021. Between 2019 and 2021, copyright revenues related to digital formats have more than doubled.
The report points out that the development here may therefore indicate that Norwegians have listened to more digital music and more Norwegian artists in recent years, even though more people have not necessarily started paying for streaming services.
Read TONO's annual report for 2021 here
The music industry's revenue from abroad includes export revenue from recorded music, royalties from concert activities abroad and copyright revenue from abroad. The report estimates the total revenue from abroad to the music industry in Norway in 2021 at NOK 276 million.
Concert-related export revenues are limited in the report to fees paid to artists and musicians from concerts abroad. Based on COVID-19 lockdowns abroad, these revenues fell from NOK 174 million in 2019 to NOK 31 million in 2020, and are estimated to be NOK 44 million in 2021.
The drop in concert revenue represents the biggest change in the music industry in the past two years. The report estimates total concert revenue in Norway in 2021 at just NOK 920 million, 70 percent lower than before the pandemic in 2019.
This is a further 29 percent drop from 2020, when revenues were already at their lowest since the first year of measurement at 1,3 billion. The decline in 2020 and 2021 came after steady and strong growth in the concert market since 2012, with annual growth of 8 percent up to and including 2019.
Revenue from recorded music was just over NOK 1,1 billion in 2021. During the period 2012 to 2021, the annual growth in streaming has been 11 percent. This represents the only growth in revenue from recorded music, which has had an overall annual growth of 3 percent. The report also shows that the annual change in revenue from streaming has been 11 percent.
Read more about "Art in Numbers" on the Arts Council's website: