Mark Mulligan

Mark Mulligan is a music analyst and the founder at MIDiA Research. He is a long-term tech analyst and a leading digital thinker with more than 20 years of experience, working with leading global music, entertainment, and tech companies. At MIDiA, Mark focuses on the streaming and creator economies, as well as music business trends and market metrics such as forecasts and market shares.

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MIDiA Research 2020-2027 Global Music Forecasts
Volume Trumps Value as Emerging Markets Dominate Growth

Mark Mulligan

21 Jul 2020

Music revenue Spotify YouTube

This report presents the key figures, trends and drivers of MIDiA’s music forecast model. The figures presented in this report are retail values and in billions of US dollars unless otherwise stated. An Excel file posted alongside this report provides complete country-level data, including DSP market shares and a detailed methodology statement.

Why Spotify needs Russia

Mark Mulligan

16 Jul 2020

Music Spotify Russia

Spotify’s delayed Russia launch finally happened this week . While it did not drive a stock price growth like the Josh Rogan deal did (the stock closed just 1 cent higher than the previous day’s close) it will actually prove much more important in the medium term.

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How the DNA of a hit has changed over 20 years

Mark Mulligan

13 Jul 2020

Music hits the song economy

Updated on 13/03/2025: Five years is a long time in the fast-changing music industry. To see how the DNA of a hit has evolved since this blog was published, check out our latest post by MIDiA's music researcher, Olivia Jones: " How the DNA of a hit changed in the last five years ".

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Time to stop playing the velocity game

Mark Mulligan

3 Jul 2020

Music Streaming music marketing

We all know that streaming has transformed consumption and business models alike, but this is not a ‘now-completed’ process. Instead, it is one that continues to evolve at pace, and the dynamic of pace is the pivotal variable.

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Recession Impact
Music Industry 2020 Growth Scenarios

Mark Mulligan

29 Jun 2020

live music Music publishing Record labels

As part of MIDiA’s research stream focused on how COVID-19 is impacting the entertainment industries, this report explores how the combination of lockdown measures and the coming recession will impact music industry revenues in 2020.

Music Subscriber Market Shares Q1 2020

Mark Mulligan

23 Jun 2020

Streaming music subscribers music subscriber market shares

WWDC would have been a perfect opportunity for Apple to announce another streaming milestone for Apple Music. It didn’t but the good news is that MIDiA already have a figure for Apple Music, as part of our latest music subscriber market shares.

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Recovery Economics
Outlook for Music, Games, Video & Sports

Mark Mulligan, Tim Mulligan, Karol Severin and Alistair Taylor

19 Jun 2020

Video Recorded music Music streaming

MIDiA analysts present in this webinar report how the entertainment industries can plan not to simply bounce back, but to rebuild their value propositions and supply chains to adjust to the realities of the new normal and flourish in the post-lockdown era.

Just what is Tencent’s Endgame?

Mark Mulligan

16 Jun 2020

Tencent Tencent Music China

Tencent’s combined $200 million investment in WMG follows on the heels of its $3.6 billion joint investment in Universal Music. It is hardly Tencent’s first investments in music, having spent $6.2 billion on music investments since 2016.

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Music Streaming Needs a New Future

Mark Mulligan

12 Jun 2020

Alibaba China Fandom

While doing some research on the Chinese streaming market I came across this fantastic UX tear down of Xiami Music . I recommend you read it in full. The day before I found this–also must-read–article on Beyoncé’s streaming strategy ,which explains how she uses different platforms to segment ...

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Recovery Economics
Bounce Forward not Back - Slides

Mark Mulligan, Tim Mulligan, Karol Severin and Keith Jopling

11 Jun 2020

Free Report

Video Music Games

MIDiA analysts present in this webinar how the entertainment industries can plan not to simply bounce back, but to rebuild their value propositions and supply chains to adjust to the realities of the new normal. The recording is available here ....

New Webinar on What Comes After Lockdown

Mark Mulligan

9 Jun 2020

coronavirus Covid-19 Games

Want to know what happens in the post-Lockdown era? Join us for our free-to-attend Recovery Economics webinar tomorrow (Wednesday 10thJune) at 4pm BST / 11am EST / 8am PT for insight on music, radio, games, TV, sports and media.

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Artists are Learning How it Feels to be a Songwriter

Mark Mulligan

8 Jun 2020

artist income Artists broken record

The ‘broken record’ streaming debate that continues to rage on is a natural consequence of the instantaneous collapse of live music revenue following lockdown. As soon as it was clear that live was going to be gone for some time , MIDiA predicted that the artist backlash against streaming royalt...

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The Global Music Industry Will Decline in 2020

Mark Mulligan

3 Jun 2020

live music decline live music forecasts music industry forecasts

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but the global music industry will decline in 2020. Although we are now nearing the post-lockdown era in many countries across the globe, we are only just at the start of the recession phase that is coming next.

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Spotify Q1 2020 Earnings
First Signs of Pre-Recession Weakness

Mark Mulligan

29 May 2020

Spotify Alphabet Business Strategy

2020 was a solid quarter for Spotify but showed early signs of COVID-19 impact across premium and especially ad supported. With a global recession looming, these may be the first signs of vulnerability in a challenged economic climate. Companies and brands...

Recovery Economics | Bounce Forward not Back

Mark Mulligan

28 May 2020

commute Covid-19 Covid-19

COVID-19 social distancing measures caused unprecedented dislocation to the entertainment economy. With a recession now a question of ‘how bad’ rather than ‘if’, entertainment companies have to adapt their businesses and identify new partners to maximise opportunities in the post-lockdown er...

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The Music Industry’s Next Five Growth Drivers

Mark Mulligan

22 May 2020

creator tools Fandom fitness

The risk with trying to imagine what the future might look like is to simply think it is going to be a brighter, shinier version of today. At this precise moment in time, this has perhaps never been truer.

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Recovery Economics
Post-Lockdown Innovation

Mark Mulligan, Tim Mulligan, Karol Severin, Alistair Taylor and Keith Jopling

20 May 2020

Business Strategy Audience Insight

COVID-19 social distancing measures caused unprecedented dislocation to the entertainment economy. With a recession now a question of ‘how bad’ rather than ‘if’, entertainment companies have to adapt their businesses and identify new partners to maximise opportunities in the post-lockdown era.

The Future of Live

Mark Mulligan

20 May 2020

Fortnite Games live

The almost total cessation of live music has sent shockwaves throughout the wider music industry. Though live companies are clearly at the epicentre, labels and streaming services are the in the blast radius too as the gaping hole left in most artists’ income is causing them to question their othe...

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Radio is Switched On Again
Strategies for 2020 and Beyond

Keith Jopling and Mark Mulligan

15 May 2020

Spotify YouTube BBC

Just what is radio? Radio is branded and produced show content known best in the form of live (or pre-recorded) broadcast. However, the definition of ‘radio’ is shifting away from the broadcast format and towards the content produced – programmes or shows – made available on-demand anywhere, via radio apps, smart speakers and podcasts.

Artists – Have Your Voice Heard

Mark Mulligan

12 May 2020

Artist survey Artists midia artist survey

MIDiA is fielding its third biannual Artist Survey. Our two surveys last year were very successful and got hundreds of artist responses. MIDiA’s artist surveys takes the pulse of the artist community and provides this information back to the artist community.

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