Studies across Disciplines in the Humanities and Social Sciences 6. Helsinki: Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies. 14–33. World Music and the Global Music Industry: Flows, Corporations and Networks

World Music is often analysed as an interlinked series of music genres that can be specified from an ethnomusicological perspective. But in its contemporary form it is also part of a cultural economy, a sub-set of the global music industry. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a sketch of the main features of the global macro-economy of music followed by comments on the World Music “genre-market ” and its relation to the macro-economy. The chapter has four sections. It begins with a definition of the music industry worldwide. This is followed by a summary of the key financial data of the industry and an estimate of the royalty flows of the music industry between global regions. The third section deals with the corporate structures of the industry. The final section considers the main characteristics of World Music as a cultural industry. Definition of the Music Industry Worldwide The past twenty years has seen a growing interest by national governments in the potential economic value of the music industry as a source of employment and of export earnings. In addition, the industry has become an enthusiastic lobbyist for government assistance, notably in strengthening intellectual property legislation. In this context, a demand has grown for data, for statistical proof of the music industry’s importance and success. As such, various formulae have been developed to describe and analyse the industry, in particular in various European countries