Universal Music Latin Entertainment and Universal Music Group Distribution emerged as the top Latin music label and distributor in the United States for 2008.
According to Nielsen SoundScan numbers compiled through Dec. 28, UMLE ended the year with a 49.39% share of all Latin album sales (with Latin music defined as albums that are at least 51% in Spanish). UMLE’s dominance comes in the wake of its acquisition of Univision Music Group earlier this year and the sustained sales of its fully-owned labels: Fonovisa, Disa, Universal Music Latino and Machete. Sony BMG followed in Latin marketshare with 21.17%, while EMI Latin’s label marketshare was 5.01% and WEA Latina took 4.18%.
Likewise, UMGD continued to be the marketshare leader for Latin music distribution, with a hefty 50.69% share. Warner Music Group’s share, including ADA and Ryko, was 5.16% while EMI Music Marketing had 5.26%.
Overall, as previously reported, sales of Latin music were down 21.1% for 2008, but digital Latin album sales went up slightly, from 515,000 Latin digital albums sold in 2007 to 625,000 in 2008.
