Recording industry says 2014 US retail music business 'essentially flat'

A new report from the Recording Industry Association of America says that the U.S. retail music business was "essentially flat" in 2014 as streaming revenue grew while physical shipment revenue declined.

Overall, retail revenue declined about half of a percent to $6.97 billion. Recorded music industry wholesale revenue, meanwhile, grew 2 percent to $4.86 billion.

The RIAA says the industry's revenue mix last year was more balanced between physical, digital and streaming sources than ever before. Permanent downloads made up 37 percent of the total market, down from 40 percent in 2013. Streaming revenue was 27 percent of the total, up from 21 percent a year earlier. Physical shipment revenue was 32 percent of the total, down from 35 percent.