YouTube Ads Leaves Global Record Business Behind

This week, Cinq Music Group revealed a piece of shocking statistics that compare revenues of the global music industry with YouTube Ads revenues alone. If you want it short, YouTube Ads managed to gross more than all the largest record companies in Q3 2021. Let’s take a closer look. 

Whopping Figures

As YouTube’s parent Alphabet says in its latest revenue report, the platform managed to generate $7.208 billion from advertising in Q3 2021. That’s over 2 billion more than the platform grossed in Q3 2020 and doesn’t even include the revenue from YouTube Premium subscriptions. 

How does that compare to record industry revenues? Well, according to the IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry), the entire record industry generated $21,6 billion in 2020. YouTube Ads grossed $20,21 in the first 9 months of 2021, which means it would make over $28 billion by the end of the year. One company beats the entire music industry! Music Business Worldwide is predicting an even larger figure of $29-$32 billion for video hosting. 

Judging by the growth rate of the largest record company, Universal Music Group, which is +18.9%, the global music business will hardly generate more than $25.7 billion by the end of the year. Goldman Sachs’s prediction is even lower than that and suggests $23.5 billion as a peak figure. 

“More Than Anyone Else”

On the wave of astonishing YouTube revenue statistics and major celebrities bragging about their revenues from YouTube Music, YouTube’s Global Head of Music, Lyor Cohen, promised to “provide more revenue to the music industry by 2025 than anyone else.” Considering the rise we see in 2021, this promise won’t be difficult to fulfill at all. Do you think YouTube will become an absolute leader in the music industry? Let’s chat about it below and share this exciting news with friends.