What is the point of a music video?

The primary way for consumers to watch music videos isn't through the purchasing of the video - it's through video streaming sites such as YouTube.

So, if the revenues from purchasing the music videos is virtually non-existent (How many people really buy music videos from iTunes? I can't imagine many people bother), then why do artists make them?

One of the reasons is of course entertainment. They're there to keep audiences engaged while they listen to the music which, sometimes, isn't good enough to hold you by itself. They also appeal to hardcore audiences and music enthusiasts who want to experience all of the artist - including their videos.

Well, there are a lot of different reasons - sometimes it depends on what kind of artist you are. If you are an established musician, you might be surprised by the millions that you can make in one year through the adverts that you can put onto your videos. It has been reported that YouTube star 'PewDiePie' earns a massive four million dollars in ad sales a year. That is a fair amount of dough. http://www.gamespot.com/articles/youtube-video-game-star-pewdiepie-earns-4-million-per-year/1100-6420544/

So, established musicians such as 'PSY' or 'Rihanna' would likely at the very least recoup their costs for music video productions and also make some profits. But for them, the profits are still fairly marginal, much too marginal to be considered as a necessity. Though for smaller musicians such as when Rebecca Black's ... smash hit single was released, that kind of money would obviously be a huge amount.

Another way in which music videos create revenue is through sponsorships. I wonder why the Iggy Azalea video used a HP branded tablet which was heavily brought to our attention during a couple of scenes?

But in modern music, a music video's point isn't really to make a profit. After all, Michael Jackson's Black Or White cost a staggering $4 million to make and that was at a time when YouTube didn't even exist and there were virtually no ways to commercially buy the music video. No, a music video's primary purpose is marketing. Michael Jackson's Black Or White music video might not have made any profits by itself, but the way in which people would have talked about the video and spread word about the song would have done wonders at influencing more purchasing of the record.

Likewise, although music videos are far more profitable nowadays, the amount of social media coverage that a song like Nicki Minaj's 'Anaconda' gets as a result of the video's outrageousness is fantastic for the record company. It gets more people curious to hear the music, which widens the audience massively. Its nearly impossible to exist on twitter without seeing the images of her 'lapdance' with Drake. It was out about twenty days ago and has already garnered 138,000,000 views. This makes the typical audience for music videos young and fairly tech-savvy as they are the ones who use social media the most. That is the kind of thing which keeps artists relevant. Music videos are there to draw attention to content and the artist, and when done right - they work brilliantly well, even if millions (MILLIONS?!) of 'dislikes' are recorded.