YouTube and Billboard Breakup Could Change the Music Industry
Over the last few decades, the music business has been rocked to its core several times. In fact, there have been times when there were many well-informed observers and experts who openly worried that the industry could cease to exist as it was known. Despite that, artists and fans have managed to evolve in ways that allowed the music ecosystem to keep going strong.
Sadly, it has recently been announced that two companies that have a huge impact on the music world have ended their relationship. While it is nearly impossible to predict what will come next, it is easy to see how the current turn of events could change the music business if things don't change.
YouTube Refusing To Provide Billboard With Streaming Numbers Could Change the Music Business
While Spotify is widely regarded as the top music streaming service and Apple Music is another major competitor, there is no doubt that many people use YouTube as their main music service. As a result, any effort to look at how successful music artists are in the current media environment definitely should include information about what songs are being streamed on YouTube. Sadly, however, YouTube has announced that it will soon refuse to give Billboard its music streaming numbers.
On December 17, 2025, YouTube's blog announced the breakup with Billboard will take effect at the dawn of January 17, 2026. The blog post explained that YouTube was making the move because the company disagrees with the methodology of how Billboard weighs streaming numbers.
"Billboard uses an outdated formula that weights subscription-supported streams higher than ad-supported. This doesn't reflect how fans engage with music today and ignores the massive engagement from fans who don’t have a subscription. Streaming is the primary way people experience music, making up 84% of U.S. recorded music revenue. We’re simply asking that every stream is counted fairly and equally, whether it is subscription-based or ad-supported—because every fan matters and every play should count. After a decade-long partnership and extensive discussions, they are unwilling to make meaningful changes."
A December 17, 2025 Variety article on the move from YouTube states that the company will still provide their streaming numbers to Luminate, which is noteworthy because that company is a primary source for Billboard. However, YouTube's announcement explicitly states that its numbers will stop affecting Billboard's charts once this move goes into effect. "After January 16, 2026, our data will no longer be delivered to Billboard or factored into their charts."
While there is no reason to think that YouTube will alter its payments to artists due to its breakup with Billboard, this is still a huge deal for musicians who seek their audiences through the streaming service. That is the case because artists who use YouTube to reach their audience will no longer have their success on the streaming service counted by Billboard once this move goes into effect. Since Billboard is the most respected music chart in the business, that means that artists will miss out on the credit they deserve.
That is extremely important because in the music industry because perception can often be reality, as the payola scandal from years ago showed. As a Medium article chronicles, record companies were caught paying DJs to play their music decades ago, which shows that exposure is an important factor in any musician's success. Since ranking high on the Billboard chart can result in a lot of exposure, YouTube's move clearly could profoundly affect many artists' careers, for the better or the worse. This move could have an even more momentous effect if other popular streaming services, like Spotify, decide to follow in YouTube's footsteps.
The aforementioned Variety article on the breakup also quoted a Billboard spokesperson responding to YouTube's decision. “There are so many ways a fan can support an artist they love, and each has a specific place in the music ecosystem. Billboard strives to measure that activity appropriately; balanced by various factors including consumer access, revenue analysis, data validation and industry guidance. It is our hope that YouTube reconsiders and joins Billboard in recognizing the reach and popularity of artists on all music platforms and in celebrating their achievements though the power of fans and how they interact with the music that they love.”
Billboard Recently Changed How Streaming Numbers Affect Their Charts
The day before YouTube's aforementioned announcement, Billboard revealed a major change the company will make starting on January 17, 2025. That company revealed on its website that the streaming numbers that the company tracks would take on a greater importance on the chart. The announced change will also make the difference between how ad-supported users and paid subscribers' music streams will be weighted by Billboard.
"As part of the change, paid/subscription on-demand streams will continue to be weighted more favorably compared to ad-supported on-demand streams, with the ratio between the two tiers narrowing from 1:3 to 1:2.5 based on analysis of streaming revenue… The change means that it will take 33.3% fewer ad-supported on-demand streams of songs from an album, and 20% fewer paid/subscription on-demand streams of songs from an album, to equal an album unit."
While the overall changes will make streaming numbers impact Billboard's charts more, it is still fascinating to learn how differently the company weighs them when compared to more traditional album purchases. "Currently, each album consumption unit equals one album sale, 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album." Learning the fact that it can take as many as 3,750 song streams to match a single sale of a 10-track album is very illuminating.