Over 200 labels abandon streaming music and their future | The Verge

NPD Group and NARM (the Music Business Association) recently conducted a study, which concluded that streaming music is damaging to record sales. That information has now caused distributor STHoldings to withdraw all of its music content — that's over 200 labels' worth — from Spotify, Simfy, Rdio, and Napster. STHoldings reported that only four of its labels said they wanted to continue streaming their content. It's a case of confirming exactly what some publishers want to hear: cheaper, user-friendly streaming services might be encroaching on the cushy sales models of years past. The reaction is reminiscent of the industry's bitterly reluctant adoption of the mp3 format in the heyday of CD supremacy, and we all know how that turned out.