If you think that streams are killing downloads, you might be right. Then again, you might be basing your opinion on totally half-baked, incomplete information that could be displaying the exact opposite effect.  It’s just to early to tell; the data is simply inconclusive.

Part of the problem is that iTunes downloads still dramatically dominate the revenue picture for so many artists, with Spotify contributing a tiny fraction (just ask Zoe Keating, for example).   Which makes it very, very difficult to understand the interplay between these two formats.  And if you want to call it apples-and-oranges, then you might as well be comparing a bushel of ‘Apples’ to a Swedish tangerine.

Here’s a look at CD Baby data for 2011 and 2010, based on stats supplied by the company.  This is the breakdown for the average direct-to-fan artist, assuming a yearly take-home of $10,000.  As you can see, conclusions are pretty much impossible.

Here’s a completely different, major label dataset.  It’s the quarter-by-quarter breakdown of digital recording sales at Warner Music Group for nearly two years (also disclosed by the company).  Keep in mind that Spotify only entered the US in July 2011, though its global growth had been robust prior to that.

On a broader scale of inconclusiveness, here’s an aggregated comparison based on RIAA stats, from a few months ago.  It definitely shows a gain across both formats – and strong download gains – but whether one is boosting the other is speculative.  Indeed, downloads might have been even higher without streaming, for all we know.