Revenue didn't bottom out. CD revenue is still on the decline, and digital revenue is still on the decline.
Ever since the age of the first recording, music has worked on a freemium model. Music was free to listen to via the radio (and ad-supported), which acted as an advertisement and upsell for physical (and later digital) media sales.
With the decline of radio and physical media, as well as the democratization of distribution (less hits, revenue spread more evenly), the music industry has been searching for a replacement business model that works.
It looks like they've found it in streaming services.
Revenue didn't bottom out. CD revenue is still on the decline, and digital revenue is still on the decline.
Ever since the age of the first recording, music has worked on a freemium model. Music was free to listen to via the radio (and ad-supported), which acted as an advertisement and upsell for physical (and later digital) media sales.
With the decline of radio and physical media, as well as the democratization of distribution (less hits, revenue spread more evenly), the music industry has been searching for a replacement business model that works.
It looks like they've found it in streaming services.