The number of people streaming music online has doubled in the past year, and now accounts for 10 per cent of record industry revenue, according to industry figures.
The findings from music trade body the BPI and the official Charts Company shows that 7.4billion tracks were played on paid-for or ad-funded streaming services during the past year - twice as many as the 3.7billion in 2012.
But while music lovers change the way that they listen to their favourite songs, less people bought albums in 2013 - leading to a dip in overall sales – mainly due to a decline in CD sales.
BPI chief executive Geoff Taylor said: ‘As digital music moves into the streaming era, the prospects for future growth in the music market look strong.’
With the growing popularity of digital music, the total income generated by streaming will be much higher as the figure does not include the cash from the advertising on free streams and on services such as YouTube.
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