If you are still unsure abut the future of music streaming, well here is another sign –according to Re/Code — that the music industry has officially shifted from selling songs to selling stream subscriptions: Warner Music Group shares last quarter, streaming music revenue passed revenue from selling downloads. Keep in mind, this is the first time a record label out of the “Big Three,” has hit that milestone.

Streaming revenue from the company’s recorded music unit, generated by companies like Spotify and YouTube, grew 33 percent in Q2, Warner CEO Stephen Cooper announced during the company’s earnings call. Warner says digital revenue grew 7 percent overall — which means download sales from outlets like Apple’s iTunes decreased during the same period.

Recently other record labels, such as Sony, made the move to remove some of their major artists music off of SoundCloud because it’s not as profitable as other streaming services such as Spotify. Music streaming services — that require subscriptions — are enjoying this.

“The rate of this growth has made it abundantly clear that in years to come, streaming will be the way that most people enjoy music,” Cooper said in a statement. “We’ll continue to collaborate with our streaming partners to expand their businesses, and more importantly, to ensure that copyright owners, artists and songwriters receive appropriate value for their work.”

Warner has made a point of licensing its music to a variety of digital platforms in the last year, including Snapchat, Vessel and Interlude.

What are your thoughts? Is this good news? Bad news? Share below.

Source: Re/Code