Blog: platforms

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.

Instagram Maps: Feature or future?

Cover image for Instagram Maps: Feature or future?

Hanna Kahlert

14 Aug 2025

Meta’s Instagram has begun rolling out a new ‘Maps’ feature, similar to Snapchat’s (but with added privacy concerns). It has also rolled out a new ‘friends’ tab on the Reels page, allowing users to see videos already liked by others they follow, seemingly weighted by the friends they int...

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The paradox of scale and success: What music can learn from gin distilleries

Cover image for The paradox of scale and success: What music can learn from gin distilleries

Hanna Kahlert

14 May 2025

Business Strategy

The digital world is becoming less reliable. Platforms are flooded with AI content ranging from banal, to amusing, to concerningly incorrect . Advertising crowds the feed alongside creators desperately trying to sell something: themselves, a lifestyle, products, businesses.

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What “Make Hollywood Great Again” really means for entertainment

Cover image for What “Make Hollywood Great Again” really means for entertainment

Hanna Kahlert

8 May 2025

Business Strategy

On Sunday, May 4th, President Trump announced his intent to put a “100 per cent Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands”. The administration has stated it is “exploring all options” and that no final decisions have been made.

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“Just because a song is viral doesn’t mean it’s good” and that’s a real problem for artists

Cover image for “Just because a song is viral doesn’t mean it’s good” and that’s a real problem for artists

Laura Fisher

1 May 2025

I saw this statement shared (ironically, virally) as a post on Instagram over the weekend. My initial thought – from the perspective of someone who has never paid much mind to chart placements – was: “ well , yeah .

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There is no Pirates of the Caribbean 6: How long is the internet going to work?

Cover image for There is no Pirates of the Caribbean 6: How long is the internet going to work?

Hanna Kahlert

29 Apr 2025

Cultural trends

Generative AI is improving, and its use is increasing. AI tools have rapidly accelerated , and, as a result, AI is now widely used to generate lesson plans, find recipe measurements, and draft lists of potential client companies.

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What does it mean for OpenAI to go social?

Cover image for What does it mean for OpenAI to go social?

Hanna Kahlert

24 Apr 2025

Business Strategy

Key takeaways from this blog: Tech giants are doubling down on AI, with social seemingly the next frontier for innovation OpenAI may be flipping the script: not adding AI to a social platform, but building social around AI This could change how we create and share online – but potentially conflict...

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Online culture is fragmenting: Why White Lotus spoilers are not flooding the internet

Cover image for Online culture is fragmenting: Why White Lotus spoilers are not flooding the internet

Hanna Kahlert

9 Apr 2025

Cultural trends

Key takeaways from this blog: Audience fragmentation is growing, with platforms like TikTok losing influence and shows like White Lotus thriving in niche, offline conversations Oversaturation of content is making it hard for entertainment to create shared cultural moments As MIDiA explores in our 'A...

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If the internet dies, where does all the attention go?

Cover image for If the internet dies, where does all the attention go?

Hanna Kahlert

2 Apr 2025

Cultural trends

Key takeaways from this blog: Social platforms dominate culture, but a vibe shift toward offline experiences is emerging as users crave more intentional, less addictive engagement (as explored in MIDiA's' Analogue revival ' report) TikTok’s recent disruption signals a loss of cultural centrality, ...

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Why ads in DMs are not the solution Instagram wants them to be

Cover image for Why ads in DMs are not the solution Instagram wants them to be

Hanna Kahlert

18 Mar 2025

Audience Insight

Key insights from this blog: Instagram's direct messaging features have become a core component of the platform; MIDiA data highlights that the majority of social media users log in to the platform to keep up to date with friends As Instagram's Feeds – and subsequently its Stories feature – have...

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Podcasting has finally become profitable, but question marks remain

Cover image for Podcasting has finally become profitable, but question marks remain

Rutger Rosenborg

5 Mar 2025

Product Strategy

Throughout 2023 and into 2024, you might have thought the sky was falling for podcasting. Layoffs and show cancellations had many in the industry wondering if there would be any financial future for the format.

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How streaming platforms are adapting in the race for affordable content

Cover image for How streaming platforms are adapting in the race for affordable content

Rutger Rosenborg

19 Feb 2025

Business Strategy

Music is expensive – not for consumers, but for companies who have to license music copyrights from rightsholders. It is a large reason Spotify did not have a full year of profitability until 2024 . What helped the company get there? Podcasting.

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Bootlegging is the scourge of many industries. Could it be music’s greatest strength?

Cover image for Bootlegging is the scourge of many industries. Could it be music’s greatest strength?

Tatiana Cirisano

7 Feb 2025

The word “bootleg” has long left a bad taste in brands’ mouths. Quite literally defined as “illicit goods,” these unauthorised versions or replications of clothes, handbags, concert tees, and other items have long plagued brands.

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The unflattening of music

Cover image for The unflattening of music

Mark Mulligan

30 Jan 2025

Cultural trends

[This post builds on two other recent MIDiA posts: Background music and What got you here ] At the half way point of the decade it is a good time to reflect on how the business of music is reshaping the culture of music – and where this is heading.

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DeepSeek and Rednote signal the dawning era of APAC

Cover image for DeepSeek and Rednote signal the dawning era of APAC

Hanna Kahlert

29 Jan 2025

Business Strategy

The AI race is a tense one. Billions of dollars have been poured into the likes of OpenAI. Meanwhile, the US and UK governments, among others, have pledged to invest heavily in AI development, suggesting that they feel it is of critical importance to “win” the new space race.

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Background music is a short-term win for DSPs – but it could be a long-term problem

Cover image for Background music is a short-term win for DSPs – but it could be a long-term problem

Olivia Jones

23 Jan 2025

Business Strategy

Note: Following the publication of this piece, Spotify released a statement regarding Pelly's article, which is reproduced in full at the bottom of this page. In this month’s issue of Harper’s Magazine , Liz Pelly published “ The Ghosts in the Machine ”.

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Sounds of 2025 | MIDiA and Splice name Pluggnb music’s fastest-growing genre

Cover image for Sounds of 2025 | MIDiA and Splice name Pluggnb music’s fastest-growing genre

Tatiana Cirisano

22 Jan 2025

Audience Insight

Cultural trends

With one of the largest, most sonically-diverse catalogues of sounds and samples, Splice provides the music that makes the music for producers around the world. So trends in what users are searching for and downloading on Splice can tell us a lot about the sounds of the future.

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Ban or no ban, what comes next for TikTok creators?

Cover image for Ban or no ban, what comes next for TikTok creators?

Hanna Kahlert

22 Jan 2025

Marketing Strategy

The TikTok ban saga continues. The official date of the ban saw the app go dark in the US and Canada, replaced by a notice that the law had come into effect. However, only a few hours later, the app came back online, with a new notice that thanks to the Trump administration’s willingness to work o...

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Why social media regulation could be a boost for the creator economy

Cover image for Why social media regulation could be a boost for the creator economy

Hanna Kahlert

26 Nov 2024

TikTok’s future hangs in the balance, with its January deadline to find a new owner fast approaching beneath the oversight of a new, and unpredictable, US administration. President Trump originally tried to ban the app himself in 2020 by executive order, which failed.

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The future of entertainment lies in collaborating with audiences themselves

Cover image for The future of entertainment lies in collaborating with audiences themselves

Hanna Kahlert

26 Apr 2023

After two years of the Covid boom, the tide that buoyed tech and digital entertainment companies has begun to recede. The likes of Meta, Netflix, and even Apple and Alphabet have all seen stock dips, largely due to inflation and market uncertainty.

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Andrew Tate, the manosphere and social media platform responsibility

Cover image for Andrew Tate, the manosphere and social media platform responsibility

Ashleigh Millar

30 Aug 2022

Millennials among us may remember Hunter Moore, a man that Rolling Stone aptly named “the most hated man on the internet” , and who is now the subject of Netflix’s recent documentary series of the same title.

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