YouTube paid out $8B to the music industry in 12 months

YouTube paid more than $8 billion to the music industry in the 12 months between July 2024 and July 2025, the company said. announcement Thursday

“Today’s $8 billion payout is a testament to the fact that the twin engines of advertising and subscriptions are firing on all cylinders,” YouTube’s global head of music, Lior Cohen, said in a statement. “This number is not the end point; it represents meaningful, sustainable progress in our journey to create a long-term home for every artist, songwriter and publisher on the global stage.”

Cohen first announced the milestone in a speech Billboard Latin Music Week on wednesday

The milestone marks a new record for the platform, as YouTube’s annual music industry payments grow to $2 billion by 2022, the company reported. $6 billion contribution Music industry earnings between July 2021 and June 2022. A year before that, in 2021, YouTube announced that it was 4 billion paid In industry within 12 months.

Thursday’s announcement comes after Spotify announced earlier this year 10 billion paid in the music industry in 2024. The company had delivered $9 billion in 2023. It’s worth noting that artists themselves don’t receive all the money — it also goes to labels, publishers, songwriters and others.

YouTube says it sees momentum from its twin-engine revenue model, noting that it has more than 125 million music and premium subscribers worldwide, including users on trial. The company also says it has two billion logged-in viewers who watch music videos every month.

“As the platform’s global footprint continues to expand, so do the opportunities for artists and songwriters to build long-lasting music careers and forever fans on YouTube,” the company wrote. Blog post.

YouTube is available in over 100 countries and supports 80 languages

The company announced at its Made on YouTube event last month that it paid Over $100 billion to creators, artists and media companies over the past four years.