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Streaming isn't stopping any time soon.A new report from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) shows revenue from music streaming topped $1 billion for the first time ever in the first half of 2015. Services like Rhapsody and Spotify as well as Sirius XM and Pandora accounted for 32 percent of industry revenues while physical units like CDs and vinyl made up 24 percent. Revenues from permanent digital downloads like iTunes declined 4 percent in the same period.The news comes at a major turning point for the music industry, RIAA Chairman and CEO Cary Sherman said in a statement, even as music sales as a whole continue to remain relatively stable."The data continues to reflect the story of a business undergoing an enormous transition," he said. "There are many positive signs: continuing the trend from 2014, wholesale revenues for the first half of 2015 increased. And revenues from streaming music services continue to grow at a healthy double digit rate."The new numbers come after the widely-advertised launch of Apple Music earlier this year, which garnered 11 million trial members in its first month. However, RIAA's report do not include the service, which launched on the last day of the time period examined.Streaming wars continue to heighten as similar services gain popularity, with artists voicing frustration with payment models, most notably Taylor Swift, who vocally pulled her music from Spotify last year."The product of music and the extraordinary roster of artists represented by today's music labels remains in high demand," Sherman said. "That is the bedrock of a successful future. At the same time, intense demand and billions of streams does not always equal fair market rates or a fair playing field. Addressing that is an essential element of fulfilling the enormous promise of today's digital marketplace."As the music industry straightens out these payment models, one thing is clear: streaming is here to stay, whether artists like it or not.
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