Blog: Music Industry - Page 9

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.

Last call for the global independent label survey

Cover image for Last call for the global independent label survey
Mark Mulligan
With 2020 now comfortably behind us and public companies in their earnings cycle, a clear picture is starting to emerge of how the global recorded music market performed. MIDiA is midway through fielding the global independent label survey that will help create the definitive view of how the independent sector fared in 2020 and its contribution to the global market.
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Equitable remuneration, artist income and unintended consequences

Cover image for Equitable remuneration, artist income and unintended consequences
Mark Mulligan
The UK Parliament’s inquiry on the economics of streaming appears to be building a case for equitable remuneration (ER). There are many iterations of what ER can mean, but a simplified description of what is in play here is: a share of streaming revenue being paid directly by the DSPs to an entity which then distributes directly to artists, thus bypassing the whole ‘do labels pay artists enough’ debate.
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Women making music

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Hanna Kahlert
Even taking into account the impact of the pandemic, it has never been a better time for independent creators in the music business. The various 2020 lockdowns may have prevented artists from earning vital touring income and disrupted release and promotion cycles, but for many it also pushed new creativity, with nearly 70% of independent artists choosing to use the time to write or make new music.
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Virtual concerts: A new video format

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Mark Mulligan
The global pandemic thrust the live music sector into chaos, with global revenues falling by 75% in 2020 compared to one year previously. The music industry was rocked by first-order impacts (no concerts, no fan engagement) and second-order impacts (many artists realising that streaming did not add up without live income alongside it).
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What measures an artist's success in today's music industry?

Cover image for What measures an artist's success in today's music industry?
Keith Jopling
It’s that time of year again for lists. Endless top albums and song rankings that can be a bonus for a music artist to be included on. A placement on an influential list (which ones those are is more of a debate these days, but let’s say Pitchfork for example, or Rolling Stone, or perhaps Fader or Pigeons & Planes if you are a hip hop artist) might just get you a few more curious eyeballs on socials and a few more streams.
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Global independent label survey

Cover image for Global independent label survey
Mark Mulligan
MIDiA Research is conducting a major study of independent label revenue in order to create a definitive review of the independent sector’s contribution to the global music market. MIDiA conducted this work for a number of years on behalf of the Worldwide Independent Network and is now independently creating a dataset for 2020.
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Pandemic boom fuels creator tools growth

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Dara Jegede
- A new generation of artists is engendering a new creative paradigm, where production is far more central to the creative process and artists are able to make and release high-quality music more quickly than ever - SAAS-based creator tools are becoming the new ‘top of funnel’ for the music industry, establishing meaningful relationships with creators before they even release LONDON—November 30, 2020: A fast-growing wave of creator tools companies are meeting the needs of a new generation of artists with innovative and intuitive music production solutions.
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Time to move beyond the song economy

Cover image for Time to move beyond the song economy
Mark Mulligan
The UK parliament is currently running an inquiry into the streaming music economy, having called for evidence from across the music business. Earlier this week were the first verbal submissions, from a number of UK artists including Tom Gray (Gomez), Guy Garvey (Elbow), Ed O’Brien (Radiohead) and Nadine Shah.
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Spotify Q3 2020: What price growth?

Cover image for Spotify Q3 2020: What price growth?
Mark Mulligan
Spotify reported another strong quarter in Q3 2020, with subscriber growth up 27% year-on-year (YoY) and ad-supported user growth up 21%. Spotify continues to set the pace for the global streaming market and has demonstrated that streaming has proven resilient to lockdown.
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How YouTube can be a music industry growth driver

Cover image for How YouTube can be a music industry growth driver
Mark Mulligan
In the coming weeks MIDiA will be presenting the third edition of its biannual YouTube music report, State of the YouTube Music Economy 3.0: End of the Beginning. This is a major report that presents the definitive traits of the YouTube music economy, including revenues, royalty payments, streams, subscribers, user behaviour and user demographics.
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Live streaming and the role of music artist empowerment in the digital era

Cover image for Live streaming and the role of music artist empowerment in the digital era
Hanna Kahlert
As the coronavirus lockdowns have forced venues to close and people indoors, artists have been unevenly impacted across the music industry. While many bigger studios were forced to cease operations, and some artists unable to release or record music – often relying on previous recordings they could still send to post-production – smaller independent artists took advantage of being home-bound.
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HomePod Mini: Apple’s pandemic-era product

Cover image for HomePod Mini: Apple’s pandemic-era product
Mark Mulligan
Apple’s Tuesday product announcement showcased its 5G iPhones, but also included the launch of the new $99 HomePod Mini. Though it might have looked like a supporting act for the launch, its strategic importance should not be underestimated – especially in the context of how Apple competes with Amazon, the company that is arguably becoming Apple’s most important competitor among the Western Tech Majors (Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook).
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