DIMA Comments on USMCA Review
November 3, 2025 | Filings & Letters
Before the Office of the United States Trade Representative – Washington, DC
In re Request for Public Comments on Public Consultation in Advance of the Joint Review of the USMCA
Docket Number: USTR-2025-0004 and USTR-2025-0005
COMMENTS OF THE DIGITAL MEDIA ASSOCIATION (DIMA) REGARDING THE OPERATION OF THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, THE UNITED MEXICAN STATES, AND CANADA
November 3, 2025
About DIMA
The Digital Media Association (DIMA) offers the following comments in response to USTR’s Federal Register notice inviting submissions from the public on the operation of the agreement between the United States of America, the United Mexican States, and Canada (USMCA).
DIMA represents the leading music streaming services in the world: Amazon, Apple Music, Feed.fm, Pandora, Spotify, and YouTube. Our members are the leading source of recorded music revenue in the United States, Mexico, Canada, and much of the rest of the world. DIMA’s members are responsible for approximately 84% of recorded music revenues in the United States, with music streaming generating more than $14 billion for the U.S. recorded music industry in 2024.
Music streaming services are not just the economic engine powering the U.S. – and global – music industries; music streaming is also a significant contributor to the broader economy. In the U.S., for every $1 in economic value generated by streaming, other sectors of the U.S. economy gain an additional $1.65. For every job directly created in music streaming, other sectors of the U.S. economy gain nine additional jobs. And streaming services are constantly innovating – in 2020, 8.82% of revenue from streaming services went to research and development – more than twice the investment level of the average industry. Streaming sustains thousands of businesses large and small, from the services themselves to artists, songwriters, producers, managers, record labels, music publishers, and collective rights management organizations.
All of this has led not only to a revitalized music industry, which now sees year over year revenue increases, after being rescued from the clutches of piracy, but also an enhanced fan experience. 94% of U.S. music streamers say they like or love their streaming service. This is translating into real results for the music industry – streamers are spending 26% more on recorded music today than they did just five years ago.
The majority of DIMA’s members operate internationally, and all of them rely on global and interconnected supply chains that are necessary for the functioning of a robust music industry that empowers music listeners to listen to whatever music they want, whenever they want, and for artists to connect with fans and reach new audiences around the world.
Streaming has broken down barriers, empowering creators to reach listeners in new ways, and in every corner of the country and the world. Streaming has turned what had traditionally been a collection of local markets – where access to music was dictated by retail store shelf space, geographic and cultural boundaries, and broadcasting transmitter limitations – into a globally interconnected landscape, which has benefitted American creators and businesses tremendously.
The success of the North American music industry depends on seamless cross-border access to audiences and creators. Streaming services do more than transmit music – they provide the audience, market access, and exposure that sustains creative careers. For artists and songwriters in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, these services are now the primary channel for building a fanbase, generating royalties, and participating in the wider North American market.
By connecting creators and listeners through a single digital ecosystem, streaming empowers collaboration, visibility, and economic opportunity that transcends national boundaries. Ensuring that this open flow of music and creative exchange remains unobstructed is essential to the region’s cultural and economic dynamism.