Juliana Mello

Juliana Mello


The Brazil Business

Updated

The Brazilian Music Industry

Juliana Mello

Juliana Mello


The Brazil Business

Updated

In this article, we detailed the size and trends of the music industry in Brazil, discussed the Brazilian copyrights law and prepared a list of the top-selling CDs and DVDs in the country.

The music oligopoly

According to ABPD (Brazilian Association of Record Producers), in its publication called "Brazilian Market Music 2011", the Brazilian Music Industry reported sales (physical and digital) of BRL 373.2 million, a growth of 8.4% over the previous year. Digital sales accounted for 16% of the total sales, CDs 53%, and DVDs and Blu-Rays 31%. Among the products sold, 73.5% were produced nationally.

Most of the Brazilian Music Industry is controlled by four major music labels (Warner, Sony BMG, Universal and Som Livre/EMI). In these companies, the artist is left with the task of composing and focus on his music, while the record company invests capital, knowledge, manpower and shall manage and make decisions about the artist's career. In this context, 360 deals predominate over self-management models, in which artists have full control over their careers.

Digital Market

Previously, DVDs were sold in physical format, however, with increased interconnectivity among TV sets, internet, tablets, computers and phones, have become dispensable, once with a file on my phone one can play it on the screen of my TV using a simple app.

Much of the digital sales in Brazil is done via mobile phones. Classes C, D and E often do not have access to broadband, what makes them buy and listen to music on their mobile devices. This strategy is not only present in Brazil. Worldwide, the record has extracted revenue from sales of ringtones.

Digital sales, as well as physical, grew compared to 2010. Among the digital formats, sales of spare songs over the Internet grew 310.7%, full albums, 51.2% and subscription streaming services, 20.6%. In the area of mobile telephony, sales also grew exponentially. In total, digital sales in Brazil (downloads + streaming + mobile) increased 535% from 2006 to 2010.

Piracy

In Brazil, it is very usual to see illegal sellers of CDs, DVDs and similar offering their pirate products through the streets, stations, buses, subways etc. According to the Association Anti-Piracy of Film and Music (APCM), the Brazilian music industry has between 48% and 65% of its total market dominated by piracy, what directly influenced industry revenues to drop 50% in sales at major national retail stores.

Furthermore, combined with these losses, there is still a big loss in tax revenue, which is estimated at BRL 500 million annually. Another very important consequence is the decline of release albums and contracts with local artists that also showed a fall of 50%. According to a 2011 report by GO GULF, Brazil ranks the 8th position in the Top 10 countries regarding online piracy.

About copyrights in Brazil

The Law nº 9610 states about copyrights in Brazil and is known as Lei dos Direitos Autorais (LDA). With regard to music are classified as intellectual work all the song compositions. It is copyright holder who adapts, translates, arranges or orchestra work that has passed into the public domain. The author doesn't have to register his work for it to be protected by the Copyrights Law.

Belong to the author the moral and economic rights over the work he created. The main moral rights of the author are:

  • The claim, at any time, the authorship of the work
  • To have his name, pseudonym or conventional signal indicated or announced, as the author, when his work is used
  • To keep the work unpublished
  • To ensure the integrity of the work, as opposed to any changes or acts that, in any event, might harm it or hit it, as author, in his honor or reputation
  • Modifying the piece, before or after use
  • To withdraw the work from circulation or suspend any use as permitted when the circulation or use involve affront to his reputation and image
  • On the death of the author, are transmitted to their successors the rights referred to work
  • The State is responsible for defending the integrity and authorship of the work fall into the public domain

Depending on the prior written permission of the author to the use of his work, reproducers must

  • Full or partial reproduction
  • Editing
  • Adaptation, the musical arrangement and any other transformations
  • The translation into any language
  • The inclusion in phonograph or audiovisual production
  • The distribution when not intrinsic to the contract signed by the author with third parties to use or exploitation of the work
  • The distribution to offer works or by cable, fiber optic, satellite, wave or any other system that allows the user to select a work or production to receive it at a time and place previously determined by who makes the demand , and where access to works or is made by any system which results in payment by the user

By posting phonographs the producer must mention on each copy:

  • The title of the work and its author included
  • The name or pseudonym of the interpreter;
  • The year of publication;
  • The name or brand that identifies him

As the LDA was created before the digital music boom, several people and institutions consider it outdated and defend that it must be reformed. For example, according to the law, it is a crime to transfer an MP3 file to your phone, what is absurd, considering that practically everyone that access internet does that. Brazil still lives under a retrograde law in several respects, and the public power seems to be ignoring the context of the current distribution and dissemination of cultural content with new technologies.

However, some institutions are against the Copyrights Law Reform, among them, the ECAD (Central Office of Collection and Distribution). ECAD is a private institution that collects the copyrights of music played publicly in each country, either domestic or foreign music. This institution is formed by nine industry associations that act as musical unions. ECAD is involved in several discussions about transparency and public supervision.

What music do Brazilians buy?

Below, you can check the lists of the best-seller CDs of 2012 and the number of units sold.

1) Paula Fernandes Live – Paula Fernandes - 1.352.000

2) Ágape Musical – Marcelo Rossi - 1.200.000

3) Extraordinário Amor De Deus – Aline Barros - 392.000

4) Luan Santana Live in Rio – Luan Santana (2011) 380.000

5) 25 Anos – Exaltasamba - 250.000

6) Multishow Ao Vivo Caetano e Maria Gadú – Caetano e Maria Gadú - 142.000

7) 4 – Beyoncé - 125.000

8) O Que Você Quer Saber de Verdade – Marisa Monte - 100.000

9) Amor de Alma – Victor & Leo - 100.000

10) Elo – Maria Rita - 100.000

11) Back To Black – Amy Winehouse - 100.000

12) Born This Way – Lady Gaga - 100.000

13) Sale El Sol – Shakira - 95.000

14) 21 – Adele - 90.000

15) Musica Para Churrasco Vol. 1 – Seu Jorge - 90.000

16) Manuscrito – Sandy - 85.500

17) Chico – Chico Buarque - 70.500

18) Femme Fatale – Britney Spears - 63.000

19) Teenage Dream – Katy Perry - 57.500

20) Ensaio de Cores Ao Vivo – Ana Carolina - 50.000

Above you can check the lists of the best-seller DVDs of 2012:

1) Paula Fernandes Live

2) Adele – Live at the Royal Albert Hall (DVD + CD)

3) Luan Santana – Live in Rio

4) Patati Patatá (4 DVDs)

5) A Turma do Balão Mágico

6) Xuxa Volumes 1 a 8

7) Padre Reginaldo Manzotti – Milhões de vozes ao vivo

8) Roberto Carlos – Elas cantam Roberto Carlos

9) XSPB 11 – Xuxa

10) U2 360º at the Rosebowl

11) Padre Fábio de Melo – No meu interior tem Deus

12) Diante do Trono 14 – Sol da Justiça

13) Caetano Veloso e Maria Gadú – Multishow ao vivo

14) Gustavo Limma e Você ao vivo

15) Beyoncé – Live at Roseland: Elements of 4

16) Amy Winehouse – I told you I was trouble

17) Galinha pintadinha 2

18) Ivete Sangalo – Multishow ao vivo Madison Square Garden

19) Diogo Nogueira – Sou eu

20) Roberto Carlos – Emoções sertanejas