Still around two-thirds of online music consumers used a computer, but the figure had declined. Mexico led smartphone usage at 77 percent while in Japan only 39 percent listened on their phones at least once in the past six months. The music industry body, known as the IFPI, has avidly sought for music consumers to pay for streaming services, seeing subscriptions as a solid source of growth in a long-suffering industry. In its most recent annual report, the federation reported that streaming in 2015 led to the first significant increase in revenue for the music industry since the dawn of online music. Apple -- which last year bet big on streaming by launching its Apple Music service -- recently unveiled its latest iPhone model which will lack physical headphone jacks.

Source: The Nation Bangkok September 13, 2016 22:18 UTC