Blog: Alibaba

Read our latest daily deep dives, hot takes, and exciting updates about the entertainment world. Check out the latest insight from your favourite analyst, or search by coverage areas - music, entertainment and fandom, creator economy and social.

Music Streaming Needs a New Future

Cover image for Music Streaming Needs a New Future
Mark Mulligan
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 her fanbase (Tidal – super fans, Spotify engaged fans, Netlix, passive fans).
min read
Read more …

Tencent Announces Strategic Pivot, Focusing On Cloud and AI

Alistair Taylor
Chinese tech major Tencent announced its first restructuring in six years and third in its 20 year history, including creating a new division to focus on business services such as cloud computing. This pivot comes off the back of the Chinese regulators freezing approvals for games licenses, a key contributor to Tencent’s revenue and an overall tightening in government regulations, which has seen a severe reduction in gaming approvals since March .
min read
Read more …

Announcing MIDiA’s State Of The Streaming Nation 2 Report

Cover image for Announcing MIDiA’s State Of The Streaming Nation 2 Report
Mark Mulligan
2016 was the year that streaming turned the recorded music business into a good news story, with revenue growth so strong that it drove nearly a billion dollars of total growth. Leading streaming services spent the year competing with ever more impressive metrics while playlisting and streaming exclusives became cornerstones of the wider music market both culturally and commercially.
min read
Read more …

Differentiating Full-Stack Media and Tech Ecosystems

Zach Fuller
Two key developments in digital media that MIDiA Research has addressed over the past year are the emergence of both full-stack media and the tech ecosystem. These shifts in the digital life have recently emerged to define many people’s purchasing and social lives online, and whilst they share similarities, it is important from a strategic perspective for those operating in the space to recognise the distinctions between the two: Tech Ecosystems Technology ecosystems are product platforms defined by the core components built into the platform by theirowners.
min read
Read more …

Four Companies That Could Buy Spotify

Mark Mulligan
For much of 2016 it looked nailed on that Spotify would IPO in 2017 and that the recorded music industry would move onto its next chapter, for better or for worse. The terms of Spotify’s $1 billion debt raise (which mean that Spotify pays an extra 1% on its 5% annual interest payments every six months beyond its previously agreed IPO date) suggest that Spotify was thinking the same way too.
min read
Read more …

Full-Stack Media and Smart TV: Why LeEco’s Acquisition of Vizio Has Big Implications for Apple and Pay TV Giants

Zach Fuller
LeEco’s (formerly LeTV) $2 Billion acquisition of flat screen makers Vizio is a bold step in the development of full-stack media offerings for Smart TV. The deal essentially buys LeEco directly into the US market by giving them direct access to the customers of Vizio, the California-based electronics company whom have built a respectable niche by aggressively pricing their HDTVs against major competitors, consequently capturing a 20% market share in the US.
min read
Read more …