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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.

Why Sora is the Manhattan Project for video

Tim Mulligan

19 Mar 2024

Video

On March 10, 2024, OpenAI, the Californian Tech start up behind AI generator ChatGPT, released several eye-catching demos of videos created by Sora , its new video AI-generator tool. Described as a text-prompt video generator, Sora creates video from user inputted text prompts.

3 min read

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Global recorded music revenues grew by 9.8% in 2023

Mark Mulligan

18 Mar 2024

recorded music 2023 recorded music revenues music revenues

Growth is back! After a slower 2022, global recorded music revenues grew by 9.8% in 2023 to reach $35.1 billion, compared to 7.1% in 2022, which means that the market is now more than double (124.5%) the size it was in 2015.

4 min read

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MIDiA independent label and distributor survey

Mark Mulligan

14 Mar 2024

Independent labels market shares Record labels

MIDiA is fielding its annual independent label and distributor survey . This is the chance for the independent sector to have its voice heard. Given all of the changes that are taking place in the streaming economy, there has perhaps never been a more important time for this.

1 min read

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What would a post-TikTok (US) future look like?

Hanna Kahlert

14 Mar 2024

Social tiktok ban digital detox

The US House of Representatives has just passed a bill, with bipartisan support, which would make TikTok break with parent company Bytedance or be banned from app stores. Based on current discourse, it looks unlikely that TikTok will comply; and unlike past legislation, it looks like this bill may h...

6 min read

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BarbenHeimer needs to usher in media fusion to fully revitalise cinema

Tim Mulligan

13 Mar 2024

BarbenHeimer oppenheimer Barbie

In many ways the 96th Academy Awards was positioned as the critical confirmation of last year’s double blockbuster performances of Oppenheimer and Barbie . Collectively, these titles generated $2.4 billion at the box office in 2023 and were heralded as announcing the return of cinema to the heart ...

3 min read

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Music has a gender problem — why do women bear the burden of fixing it?

Tatiana Cirisano

13 Mar 2024

music industry gender equity gender equality

On International Womens’ Day, MIDiA published the fourth annual edition of BE THE CHANGE: Gender equity in music , in collaboration with TuneCore and Believe. We surveyed more than 4,100 music creators and professionals from 133 countries, as well as conducting interviews, to learn about their cha...

5 min read

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The AI revolution sweeping video creator tools

Ben Woods

12 Mar 2024

Video

Streamlining the content creation process has become a key battleground for social video platforms. They are banking on AI shouldering most of the menial tasks associated with publishing a video, freeing up creator time to publish more content.

3 min read

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New audiobook pricing gives Spotify the best of both worlds

Rutger Rosenborg

6 Mar 2024

Audiobooks Spotify Audible

In late 2023, Spotify slowly started rolling out audiobooks to Premium subscribers in select markets . In contrast with Spotify’s unlimited supply of music, Premium subscribers were allotted 15 hours (roughly two audiobook equivalents, according to Spotify) of audiobook listening per month.

4 min read

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Is BritBox International the missing commercial streaming catalyst for the BBC?

Tim Mulligan

4 Mar 2024

BritBox Video Business Strategy

Last Friday, ITV announced the sale of its entire 50% interest subscription video on demand (SVOD) service to its partner and fellow shareholder, BBC Studios (the commercial arm of the BBC). BritBox was Launched in in 2017 as a joint venture between BBC Studios and ITV.

3 min read

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Why don’t we hear popular music on popular podcasts?

Rutger Rosenborg

29 Feb 2024

Audio Podcasts Streaming

There are a number of popular podcasts that dissect popular music. One is called, well, Dissect . Others are Popcast , Song Exploder , and Switched on Pop . Podcasts like these usually play extended sections — if not whole recordings — of popular tracks, but beyond that, it is virtually impossib...

5 min read

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TikTok highlights the importance of publishing — and lack of songwriter services

Tatiana Cirisano

29 Feb 2024

Social media TikTok songwriters

It is no news flash that the music business has a reputation for undervaluing songwriters. Despite being arguably the most important part of the song, the shift to streaming has been even more disastrous for songwriters’ remuneration than artists.

4 min read

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Niche is mainstream. So… what next?

Hanna Kahlert

29 Feb 2024

Niche Entertainment trends

Entertainment industries today are navigating two contrasting pressures. On the one side is the demand for niche personalisation: algorithms drive hyper-targeted content to just the right audiences, who identify strongly with it and form small, powerful communities, which can allow those proposition...

5 min read

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Paramount is on the right track but does it have enough time?

Tim Mulligan

29 Feb 2024

Paramount+ Parammount+ Pluto TV

Yesterday, Paramount announced its full year 2023 financial results. The numbers were stark, with revenues down 2% to $29.7 billion and an operating loss of $451 million. The stock price declined at the end of the day by 1.

2 min read

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Quick take: The games industry health check

Karol Severin

27 Feb 2024

games forecasts games revenue Games industry

In recent weeks and months, a growing number of people have been asking: “What is going on with the games industry?”, “Is the games industry doomed now?”, “Is it done growing?”, “If neither a new Switch or GTA 6 are getting released this year, is the games industry going to have a weak...

6 min read

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What indie book publishers can gain from audiobooks

Rutger Rosenborg

22 Feb 2024

Audiobooks Music streaming music industry

In the music industry, three major labels generate the lion’s share of revenue: Universal, Sony, and Warner. In the book publishing industry, the “big five” publishers dominate: Penguin Random House, Hachette, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, and HarperCollins.

4 min read

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Could YouTube be the music-first social platform the industry needs?

Tatiana Cirisano

22 Feb 2024

music video TikTok YouTube

In December, we mused on what could happen if artists collectively stepped off the content treadmill. With Universal Music Group (UMG) removing its catalogue from TikTok, that thought experiment came startlingly close to fruition.

4 min read

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Social is the new streaming… but the cracks are already showing

Hanna Kahlert

22 Feb 2024

Streaming Social Music

When streaming first overtook music, it did so by force. Audiences quickly latched on to the freedoms of digital life and the accessibility of music on the internet. Piracy was on the rise and downloading music via Napster and LimeWire became a shared memory for millennials.

5 min read

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Music creators – take our survey!

Mark Mulligan

21 Feb 2024

Music Cultural trends

MIDiA is fielding its annual music creator survey and if you are a music creator we would like you to take part. Whether you are a songwriter, artist, producer, engineer, vocalist, DJ, instrumentalist, soundtrack composer, or whatever you may be, we want to hear from you.

2 min read

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Expect Warner Bros. Discovery’s forthcoming full year 2023 results to open up vital strategic choices

Tim Mulligan

20 Feb 2024

Warner Bros. Discovery d2c DTC

On Friday, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) will announce its full year 2023 financial results to investors in its fourth quarter 2023 earnings call . It is going to make for hard reading by both investors and WBD senior management alike.

4 min read

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Are Prime Gaming subscriptions the drug that Twitch cannot live without?

Ben Woods

19 Feb 2024

Twitch Prime Gaming Prime Video

Twitch chief executive Dan Clancy has been quick to reshape the livestreaming platform since taking charge just shy of a year ago. Clancy has cooled competition with YouTube and Kick and taken the wind out of exclusive deals by backing multi-streaming.

4 min read

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