Santa Monica-based Universal Music Group’s streaming and subscription revenue boomed in 2020, the corporation’s parent company, Vivendi, reported on March 3.

UMG, one of the three biggest music companies in the United States, generated $4.3 billion from subscriptions and streaming in fiscal 2020, up 15.3% from the previous year. The business represented 52% of the company’s annual revenue.
 
Overall, UMG revenue reached $8.9 billion in 2020, up from around $8.5 billion the previous year. The music company accounted for about 46% of Paris-based Vivendi’s total revenue and was the conglomerate’s highest-earning business unit.
 
“Although the Covid-19 pandemic is having a more significant impact on certain countries or businesses than others in 2020, Vivendi has demonstrated resilience in adapting its activities to continue to best serve and entertain its customers while reducing costs to preserve its margins,” the company said in its earnings statement.
 
For fiscal 2020, Vivendi brought in $19.2 billion in revenue, up slightly from $19 billion the year before, beating Wall Street expectations.
 
UMG’s lowest earning segment for the year was merchandising, which dropped 39.6% to $349.8 million.
 
UMG has long been the crown jewel of Vivendi’s music empire. In February, Vivendi announced it would take UMG public with an initial public offering on the Euronext NV exchange in Amsterdam by the end of 2021.
 
The IPO would leave Vivendi with 20% ownership of the company, with 60% going to existing shareholders and an additional 20% going to a consortium led by Chinese conglomerate Tencent Holdings Ltd.