MUMBAI:  TuneCore, the premier digital music distribution and publishing administration service provider, announced today that artists have earned more than $36 million in Q1 of 2015, a 5 per cent increase versus the same time 2014. Those earnings were driven by 2.8 billion downloads and streams. Since 2006, TuneCore Artists have earned over $541 million from over 15.2 billion downloads and streams.

The growth of international music consumption is fast becoming an important source of income for independent musicians.  Emerging markets like Chile, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Poland and Turkey have experienced major growth, seeing 134 per cent, 70 per cent, 48 per cent, 68 per cent and 180 per cent increases (respectively) in artists' earnings. Committed to artists getting their music heard worldwide, TuneCore continues to grow their 150+ digital music partners, and in Q1 added these leading music services: Play.me (Italy) and Zvooq (Russia and surrounding countries).

Artists continue to entrust TuneCore Music Publishing Administration to register and collect their worldwide songwriter royalties resulting in the number of managed compositions growing to over 300,000, a 20 per cent  increase (Q1 2015 vs. Q1 2014). Songwriters are also reaping the benefits of additional revenue from synch and licensing deals that are negotiated on their behalf. Recent high-profile placements include: HBO's hit series Girls, cable series Better Call Saul and recently released feature film Furious 7.

TuneCore will continue to focus on its key principle of getting more artists' music to more people worldwide and providing the artists with the means and tools to build indie careers. Knowing the importance social media plays in promoting music, TuneCore Artists will soon be able to optimize the way they share their music across all their social media platforms with the new web application, MSCLVR.co. The DropKloud app will continue to add new functionality for even greater engagement for both the artist and the fan. Also look out for new initiatives to provide further high-profile exposure for artists.

"We're so proud to see our artists succeeding and we're thrilled to be able to offer them the continued support and tools needed to advance their careers," said TuneCore CEO Scott Ackerman. "It is amazing to explore all the different ways independent artists can connect with fans, reach new audiences worldwide and maximize their earnings.  It's such a exciting time in the music industry and for TuneCore, building off of the strong start of the year, we are looking forward to even greater things to come in 2015."