Digital distribution is how a recording travels from an artist or label to services such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music or Amazon Music. Artists generally do not upload directly to these platforms: a distributor, sometimes called an aggregator, delivers the audio, artwork and metadata, then collects the royalties the services pay and passes them on, after its fee or commission.
Each release carries identifiers that keep the system working: an ISRC for every recording and a UPC or EAN barcode for the release as a whole, together with credits, release date and territories. Mistakes at this stage can send streams or money to the wrong place, so careful metadata is part of the job.
Streaming now dominates recorded music: according to IFPI, it accounted for 69% of global recorded music revenues in 2024. Artists signed to a label usually reach the services through the label’s distributor, while self-releasing producers compare distributors by fees, rights terms and payment conditions.