Significant increase in streaming revenues

Koda’s revenues from streaming went up by 49 per cent in 2016, and there is potential for further growth.

Danish audiences stream music, film and TV content like never before. A study conduced by megafon for IFPI shows that 64 per cent of all Danes aged 16 to 70 use a streaming service to listen to music. The most recent media trend study conducted by the Danish broadcasting corporation, DR, shows that TV streaming services, spearheaded by Netflix and YouTube, continue to gain ground and are particularly popular among the very young.

The popularity of streaming services is also apparent in Koda’s revenues. From 2015 to 2016 the revenues generated by streaming went up by approximately 49 per cent, corresponding to an increase from 12 to 18 million EUR. Kaare Struve, head of Koda’s Broadcast and Online department, explains that the main reasons behind this growth are a combination of deliberate efforts to enter into agreements with all providers in Denmark and growing music consumption in general:

“We have worked intensively on entering into agreements with all streaming services on the Danish market for some years now. In doing so we have ensured that the rightsholders we represent will get a share of the growing digital consumption of music. Rightsholders are currently beginning to feel the benefits of that work now that the Danes’ consumption of music and video streaming services has greatly increased,” says Kaare Struve.

Of course we are pleased that our efforts within the field of online content are reaping benefits now, but we are not about to rest on our laurels – Anders Lassen

Better agreements and more services

Growing consumption is not the only cause behind the growing revenues generated by streaming. New streaming services have arrived in recent years, and at the same time Koda has succeeded in negotiating better deals with several of the existing streaming services in the market.

“In recent years we have seen several new streaming services set up business on the Danish market. For example, we have entered into an excellent agreement with Apple Music, which has become a key player on the music streaming business in record time. These agreements and new providers have had a strong impact on the results of 2016,” says Kaare Struve.

Still lots to fight for

Even though 2016 showed a substantial increase in streaming income, there is still plenty to fight for in the future:

“Of course we are pleased that our efforts within the field of online content are reaping benefits now, but we are not about to rest on our laurels. There are still plenty of battles that need to be fought. For example, many consumers use the free alternatives provided by streaming services such as Spotify Free. And the area is hampered by obsolete legislation which does not, in its present form, require services such as YouTube, Soundcloud, Facebook and similar platforms to pay for the rightsholders’ content. This means that in several cases the rightsholders we represent do not receive the salary that their work is worth – and that they do not benefit as much from the Danes’ growing digital music consumption as they should,” says managing director of Koda, Anders Lassen.

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