Those surveyed indicated a willingness to pay a minimum monthly fee of $10, either for streaming music or access to their personal music libraries on multiple devices. There are an estimated 50 million iTunes users in the U.S. and according to NPD's research, a model that offers iTunes users free access to their own music libraries would attract 13 to 15 million subscribers.
A $1 Billion Opportunity
The numbers are all based on a limited survey but the future of streaming music looks promising. “After the service's launch, user numbers could conceivably rise substantially, as they upgrade to newer connected devices and actually experience the benefits of cloud-based music," said Russ Crupnick, VP and senior entertainment analyst for NPD. “The market opportunity is close to $1 billion in the first year, which is roughly two-thirds the revenue garnered by the current pay-per-download model."
“We don't yet know what, if any, effect these services might have on the traditional pay-per-download music model, or whether consumers will ultimately spend more on digital music overall, if or when any of these options eventually rolls out," Crupnick added.
