The French music industry has assessed its carbon footprint

Greenhouse gas emissions from the French music industry reached less than 3 million tons of CO2 equivalent in 2022. However, without intervention to contain them, emissions could triple by 2030.

A report published by the Centre national de la musique (CNM) entitled Réduisons notre empreinte carbone ! ("Let's Reduce our Carbon Footprint!") revealed that greenhouse gas emissions from the recorded music industry in France amounted to approximately 2,780 kilotons of CO2 equivalent in 2022 (2.78 million tons). This is the equivalent of over one million round trips from Paris to New York by plane, according to the authors.

Collectively supported by trade union organizations representing phonographic producers and distributors, within the framework of the "Green Alternatives" call for projects launched in 2021 by the Ministry of Culture, the project focused on measuring the greenhouse gas emissions associated with French music productions, both those consumed domestically and those distributed internationally by French stakeholders¹. In doing so, it considered the full life cycle of music, from its production to its consumption.

The report quantifies the carbon footprint of the activities associated with the recording industry, including recording studios, music publishers and producers, physical and digital distributors, stores and streaming or e-commerce platforms, music broadcasting on radio and television, and the carbon impact of listeners' own music consumption. The study does not include the carbon footprint of rights management, upstream activities to recording such as composition or creation, nor the carbon footprint of synchronisation or live performance.

The main source of emissions is the manufacturing of listening devices

In 2022, the period covered by the study, the authors identified 28 million physical units (CDs and vinyls) distributed by French stakeholders; 163 billion audio streams; 46 billion views of long videos; and 466 billion views of short videos. Additionally, 6.78 billion hours of music listening on the radio and 380 million hours of music video viewing on television were recorded. Furthermore, 261 billion views on video platforms could not be categorized, and a share attributable to music was estimated using a weighted average value.

The manufacturing of user terminals (telephones, computers, speakers, etc.) is by far the leading source of emissions in the sector, at 1.4 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e) in 2022, or 51% of the total, ahead of the energy consumption of terminals during listening (23% of emissions at 640,000 tCO2e), followed closely by digital distribution (22% of emissions for the manufacturing and energy consumption of network equipment and servers, or 620,000 tCO2e).

The production of music itself, including the travel of performers to the studio, the immobilization of the technical equipment necessary for recording, the travel of personnel, and all emissions related to music marketing efforts (merchandising, music video production, physical and digital communication), represents only 2% of emissions (45,000 tCO2e), and the manufacturing and end-of-life management of physical media barely 1% (23,000 tCO2e).

All emissions related to the operation of the sector's structures, including energy consumption of sites, fixed assets, operating purchases, waste, home-work travel, and other business travel, account for less than 1% of the total (17,000 tCO2e).Similarly, physical distribution, which encompasses the transportation of physical media to points of sale or to the end consumer in the context of e-commerce, as well as the travel of listeners to purchase them in stores, accounts for only 6,000 tCO2e.

The potential for decarbonisation

It is anticipated that the quality of audio and video music content will improve, that the market will continue to grow and that there will be an increase in music consumption. Furthermore, the use of artificial intelligence is set to rise, although this factor has not yet been modelled or taken into account. As a result, it is expected that there will be a significant rise in emissions from the sector.

The authors project that the sector's emissions will triple in France by 2030, reaching over 8,000 kilotons of CO2 equivalent (8 million tCO2e), representing a 37% annual increase."If the primary challenge in 2022 was the manufacture and end-of-life of terminals, it is probable that the core of emissions will be digital distribution (use of networks and data centres) in 2030, due to the increase in video viewing and the improvement in quality.

The study states that this would represent 55% of the sector's emissions. It recommends optimising audio and video formats to reduce the weight of data, encouraging regular downloading, and modulating subscriptions according to the audio quality.

It seems clear that encouraging the manufacture of durable and repairable devices, combating planned obsolescence and raising consumer awareness of responsible purchasing habits are crucial steps to be taken. In the context of music production, despite representing a relatively minor proportion of total emissions (2%), a number of measures have been identified as being readily implementable by professionals. These include the promotion of second-hand or European-sourced equipment, the optimisation of travel for artists and teams, and the utilisation of digital communication media.

Additionally, the authors have highlighted the potential for collaboration with manufacturers of physical media, such as vinyl and CDs, with the aim of reducing their environmental impact. This could entail the exploration of alternatives, including the development of lighter vinyls, the introduction of lower order thresholds, and the use of recycled materials. It is imperative to raise awareness of environmental issues among artists, professionals and the general public. This can be achieved through the development of training modules, the creation of good practice guides and common evaluation frameworks, the development of self-diagnostic tools, and the integration of environmental issues into music training courses.

Roadmap

In order to achieve the aforementioned objectives, a small steering committee has been established, comprising the founding partners (CNM, SNEP, UPFI, SMA), which will act as a liaison with professionals in the sector. Furthermore, an enlarged steering committee will be constituted, integrating other key players such as the three subsidiaries of the music majors (Sony Music France, Universal Music France and Warner Music France), SMEs, VSEs and a streaming platform. This committee will be responsible for validating and guiding the actions carried out.

The REC project entails the regular monitoring of the sector's emissions and an adaptation of its roadmap every three years. This is with the objective of achieving compliance with the Paris Agreement, which sets a target of a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 in comparison to 1990 levels.

1. This scope includes the carbon impact of French music catalogues distributed abroad, but excludes international music catalogues distributed in France.