Streaming has topped CD sales in revenue for the first time in the United States as music listeners flock to on-demand services and Internet radio , industry figures showed . Data for 2014 showed a major shift to streaming as opposed to physical sales and permanent downloads , with rapid growth both for on-demand services such as Spotify and Rhapsody and Internet radio providers such as Pandora . Streaming revenue totaled $ 1.87 billion , edging out the $ 1.85 billion earned by CD sales , according to data of the Recording Industry Association of America . Scroll down for video . Data for 2014 showed a major shift to streaming as opposed to physical sales and permanent downloads , with rapid growth both for on-demand services such as Spotify , app seen here , and Rhapsody and Internet radio providers such as Pandora ©Jonathan Nackstrand ( AFP/File ) Pop superstar Taylor Swift is the most vocal critic of streaming and last year pulled her catalog off Spotify , which offers free access . Bjork has also refused to stream her latest album 'Vulnicura , ' saying she felt uneasy giving out the emotionally intense work for free . Streaming helped stabilize the bottom line for the long-troubled industry , with overall revenue from recorded music going up two percent to $ 4.86 billion to mark the fourth year of growth . 'The industry continues to rapidly grow the share of revenues coming outside of traditional unit-based sales , ' the association said in a report Wednesday . Whatever the bottom line , the growth of streaming has been controversial with numerous stars complaining that the revenue sent back to artists is paltry . Pop superstar Taylor Swift is the most vocal critic of streaming and last year pulled her catalog off Spotify , which offers free access . Bjork has also refused to stream her latest album 'Vulnicura , ' saying she felt uneasy giving out the emotionally intense work for free . Spotify has hit back by describing itself as a rare source of growth in the music industry and has said it has distributed $ 2 billion back to artists over the past seven years . The US association said that CD sales fell by 12.7 percent last year . But some of the strongest growth in the industry was in vinyl , which has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years among collectors . A timeline of Spotify accomplishments on a wall at the entrance to the company headquarters in Stockholm . The Swedish startup that revolutionised digital music is a major player in the streaming world - which has now overtaken CD sales . Revenue from vinyl albums and EPs jumped by 50 percent , although the total of $ 315 million was still a fraction of the market for CDs or digital formats . Despite the sharp growth of streaming , permanent digital downloads on services such as iTunes remained the largest overall category for revenue . The United States is the world 's largest music market . Format tastes have significant differences around the world , with CDs still dominating Japan but streaming taking off in Scandinavia .
Streaming revenue totaled $ 1.85 billion , CD sales earned $ 1.87 billion . On-demand services such as Spotify and Rhapsody and Internet radio providers such as Pandora biggest beneficiaries of explosion . Comes as Apple believed to be preparing to launch streaming service .