• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content

Harvard Journal of Sports and Entertainment Law

  • About Us
    • JSEL Leadership
    • Contact
  • Print Edition
    • Previous Editions
    • Submissions
  • Online Content
    • Career Spotlights
    • Highlights
    • Sponsor Articles
    • Commentary
  • Special Issues
    • Special Issue 2020: Name, Image, and Likeness
    • Special Issue Fall 2021 – NCAA v. Alston
  • Events
    • Symposium

RIAA Modernizes: Gold and Platinum Program Now Takes Streaming Into Account

hlsjrnldev · February 8, 2016 · Leave a Comment

To align its Gold and Platinum Certifications with actual listening trends, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has announced the inclusion of on-demand audio and video streams  in its Gold and Platinum Program. It has become impossible to discuss the music industry without discussing streaming – the phenomenon that has revolutionized music consumption and disrupted the entire industry.   The RIAA latest announcement is no exception to the trend.  Gold and Platinum Certifications have been a long-respected measure of artists’ success in the music industry.   However, as revenue from streaming overtakes digital downloads, a Program that ignores streaming figures does not accurately reflect an Album’s success with listeners. In this context, the announcement seems almost inevitable. The RIAA’s willingness to modernize the Gold and Platinum Program is no surprise, as it has counted on-demand audio streaming  towards its Digital Singles Award since 2013. Since the expansion, seventeen albums have been newly certified as either Gold or Platinum.  Notable albums include Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” and Rihanna’s newly released “Anti.” While most applaud the change, some have complained that including streaming makes it too easy to qualify for Certification and is akin to “cheating.”

Regardless of opinion, this move by the RIAA is further confirmation that streaming is here to stay. Learn more about this story here

Jennifer Marr is an Entertainment and Sports Highlight Contributor for the Harvard Journal of Sports and Entertainment Law and a current first year student at Harvard Law School (Class of 2018).

 

 

Filed Under: Highlight Tagged With: digital streaming, entertainment, music, Rihanna

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Contact Us

Journal of Sports and Entertainment Law: jsel@mail.law.harvard.edu

Committee on Sports and Entertainment Law: csel@mail.law.harvard.edu

Copyright © 2023 · Daily Dish Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in