Asia leads global digital-music consumption trend: Ipsos

'The Connected Music Matters Research' is a 26-country survey of online consumers aged 16 to 64 years, which highlights their importance in the growth and development of the digital-music market. The research sampled close to 20,000 respondents from around the world, with interviews conducted online in April of this year.

Asian consumers, the study found, are also sharing their music taste on social media, with 35 per cent having posted and/or shared music or music videos on social-networking sites in the past month, compared with 31 per cent globally. 

"It's clear that music is a passion in Asia, and it has gone social," noted Steve Garton, managing director, MediaCT Greater China, at Ipsos.

The report also showed that Asians are more willing to pay for digital music than the global average, with three in 10 Indians claiming to have done so in order to download a music track, followed by 24 per cent in South Korea and 20 per cent in Indonesia—surging ahead of the global average of 14 per cent.

For paid streaming and paying to download a whole album, India once again stood out as ardent music industry supporters. Nearly four in 10 respondents purchased a CD in a physical store and also via the Internet.

Despite reports on the CD's demise, the survey found that CD sales are still robust, and the format remains a popular way of consuming music across the world. However the tide is turning, with a sustained momentum in favour of the consumption of music online and digitally. 

Music apps also have rising influence, with 26 per cent of global respondents having downloaded music apps to their tablets and mobile phones in the past 30 days. Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa, and Latin America lead the pack in the consumption of music apps. In Asia itself, India again led the way in downloading music apps at 53 per cent, followed by Indonesia and China.

Connected Music Matters also revealed that a significant challenge still exists for the industry: Free streaming is popular in Latin America and free downloading is much preferred in Asia. Countries such as Brazil, Mexico and Argentina stood out as front-runners in their consumption of free streaming services, while many music lovers in Indonesia, China and India have downloaded music without paying.

"With more devices, more content and more connectivity it’s important for the digital entertainment industry to understand the habits of music consumers," said Jasper Donat, president of digital and music matters and CEO of Branded Ltd.