Music and record-producing companies will soon realize the untapped potential of digital music subscription that will also curb the availability of free music downloads online.

Music subscriptions will be tapped by leading technology providers Apple, Microsoft, and even by social networking sites such as Facebook to maximise the revenues from this industry.

Subscription growth will also be driven by technology giants Apple and Google, as well as Spotify, which are all expected to launch digital music subscription services this year.

More revenues are seen pouring from selling music online in the Asia-Pacific Region by 2015 as the generations X and Y fuse together their disposable incomes.

Technology research firm Ovum said in its latest forecast that global digital music revenues are expected to hit more than $20 billion by 2015, out of which 35 percent will be derived from countries in the Asia-Pacific Region, which is now churning a young populace drawn more to the Internet than the Baby Boomer generation.

Some music downloads are free online. However, companies will realize its untapped potential and therefore boost the compounded annual growth rate for digital music placed at more than 28 percent between the years 2010 to 2015 in countries lying at the Asia-Pacific Region.

Ovum analyst Mark Little said: "Digital music will experience what might appear to be healthy growth over the next five years, but there is a danger that this could mask the fact that the industry is not maximizing revenue potential."

"There is too much free music available in the digital economy and not just the illegal kind. Free Internet radio such as Pandora or Grooveshark, and freemium on-demand music services such as Spotify, are offering free music without maximising advertising or premium subscription revenues for themselves or the industry," he added.

Ovum's forecast predicts that Asia-Pacific revenues from music subscription services will grow at a CAGR of more than 40% from 2011 to 2015, as consumers recognize the benefits of being able to access millions of streamed songs for the price of a CD every month rather than owning individual downloads.

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