Nielsen released its 2015 U.S. Music Year-End Report on Wednesday. Total consumption for 2015—album sales plus track-equivalent albums and streaming-equivalent albums—increased more than 15 percent over 2014, led by the continued surge in streaming. More than 317 billion songs were streamed on-demand in 2015 through audio and video platforms, an increase of 92.8 percent from 2014.

Although album sales were down 6 percent in 2015, the decline was notably less than the 11 percent decline for 2014. Vinyl album sales continued to grow with sales up 30 percent, accounting for nearly 9 percent of total physical album sales.

David Bakula, senior vice president of Industry Insights, reflected on the sales patterns.

“While music fans continued to drive dramatic growth in on-demand streaming music, with volume up 93 percent over 2014, it’s clear that the album is still a viable format for music fans,” Bakula said.

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