CD still popular with Germans
According to the German Music Industry Association in Germany, the still relatively high popularity of physical formats among fans compared to other countries continues to ensure the diversity of sound carriers and market stability.
According to the German Music Industry Association (BVMI), the number of audio streams grew by a good 40 percent year-on-year in 2018 to a total of 79.5 billion, reaching a new all-time high. Although 48.2 million CDs were sold, 23% fewer than in 2018, the compact disc was still the second most important market segment in Germany in the year 36 following its market launch, as shown by fans' purchasing behavior.
Downloads ranked third with 49 million units, including 7.5 million albums and 41.5 million individual tracks. Vinyl records sold a total of 3 million units last year, a slight decline of 7 percent, but vinyl still clearly has its fans in the niche market and therefore also plays a role for many artists when planning their release formats.
Physical music videos (DVD/Blu-ray) also made it into the top 5 most used or sold music formats with 2.6 million units sold. - This preliminary sales trend calculation covers the number of units purchased and streamed in 2018. The BVMI is expected to report the overall market development based on sales at the beginning of March 2019.
