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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.

‘Nice for What?’ and the Slow Death of the Album

Zach Fuller

10 Apr 2018

Apple Music beggars banquet death of the album

I write this week’s blog conflicted between the music fan who grew up on the album and the MIDiA analyst looking at the numbers (an eternal struggle). Alongside the feature-length film, the LP was one of the definitive artistic mediums to emerge in the 20th century, but it was also bound to the sa...

3 min read

Spotify and the Music Industry: Who Needs Who More?

Zach Fuller

6 Apr 2018

Kobalt Netflix Sony

Following Spotify’s DPO earlier this week, much of the financial commentary around the listing emphasised the company’s loss-making status. Those familiar with Spotify’s business model know this is attributable to the sizeable fees the company pays out to rights holders—the gatekeepers to th...

3 min read

Is ESPN+ The Shape Of Future Video Sports Coverage?

Tim Mulligan

6 Apr 2018

Disney ESPN+ Sports

On 12 April Disney will launch ESPN+ into an increasingly competitive market. The move forms part of Disney’s stated aim to reach consumers directly, following on from the creation of a dedicated direct-to-consumer and international business unit established last month.

2 min read

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Spotify D(PO)-Day

Mark Mulligan

3 Apr 2018

DPO IPO Spotify

Arguably the most anticipated day in the history of digital music is upon us. By the end of it we will have the first hint at whether Spotify is going to fall at the Snap Inc. or Facebook end of the spectrum of promising tech IPO, or DPO in the case of Spotify.

4 min read

Quick Take: Have We Witnessed Peak Silicon Valley?

Zach Fuller

30 Mar 2018

Apple Facebook fairchild semiconductors

In light of Facebook’s controversial handling of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, it seems a pertinent time to ask if the world is falling out of love with Silicon Valley, the West Coast powerhouse that birthed many of the world’s eminent technology companies.

2 min read

Free Is Never Free In The Digital Economy; Video Just Might Be Facebook’s Salvation

Tim Mulligan

29 Mar 2018

Alphabet Cambridge Analytica Facebook

Unless you are one of those rare individuals who is still able to live a digital-free life, you will have been made aware of Facebook’s recent fall from grace on the back of the revelations about its unwitting relationship with the suddenly world-famous Cambridge Analytica.

4 min read

Spotify and Netflix Are Experiencing Opposite User Engagement Trends

Karol Severin

27 Mar 2018

Fuse listening hours monthly hours

The latest Fuse data enables us to comparemonthly hours per MAU spent onSpotify and monthly hours per subscriber spent on Netflix over 2017. Interestingly they are travelling in opposite directions. Spotify & Netflix's Monthly Hours Of Engagement per MAU/Subscriber While Spotify’s monthly cont...

2 min read

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Quick Take: Frustrate and Destroy – YouTube’s Frontloaded Strategy

Zach Fuller

23 Mar 2018

Apple Music deeper lyor cohen

Listen to any music streaming debate and it will not be long before you the value gap discussion regarding YouTube is brought up. It is a point MIDiA has discussed at length through distinguishing Spotify and YouTube’s business models (that of all streams created equal vs share of ad revenue), but...

2 min read

The Spotify Numbers You Won’t Have Seen

Mark Mulligan

23 Mar 2018

Spotify Spotify dpo spotify IPO

One of the core values that we deliver to our clients at MIDiA Research is finding the ‘third number’— the data point that wasn’t reported by a company but that can be arrived at through a process of modelling and triangulation.

5 min read

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Amazon Has Hit The Brakes On The Grand Tour

Tim Mulligan

22 Mar 2018

Fans of the Amazon original Grand Tour last week will have been disappointed to find out that the eclectic motorsports/chat show was not going to be renewed beyond the third season which is currently in production.

3 min read

Voice Control Could Cause a Boom in Ad-Supported Music and Podcasts

Zach Fuller

16 Mar 2018

Creativity and commerce have a tempestuous relationship at the best of times, yet both recognise the other’s importance in monetising their work. Nowhere is this more pronounced than in ad-land, which aside from direct monetisation (paid subscriptions etc.

3 min read

Why Exclusive Live Sports Coverage Matters To Facebook

Tim Mulligan

14 Mar 2018

Facebook MLB Online video

Facebook’s decision to acquire the exclusive digital streaming rights to Major League Baseball is another clear push by the social media giant into the traditional world of TV content. The agreement which was publicised on March 9th, allows Facebook to stream 25 live games in 2018 through the MLB ...

3 min read

Could Magic Leap’s Future End Up More B2B than B2C?

Karol Severin

13 Mar 2018

magic leap magic leap funding mixed reality

Magic Leap announced last week that it has raised $461 million from the Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. This brings its latest fundraising round (D) to $963 million, which makes a total of $2.

3 min read

Not All Originals Are Created Equal

Tim Mulligan

12 Mar 2018

Netflix Online video Originals

As the world shifts closer to becoming a digital video landscape, the ‘original’ has become a key part of the value proposition for subscription video on demand (SVOD) services as they battle for market share.

3 min read

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Quick Take: NME and the Decline of Print

Zach Fuller

9 Mar 2018

digital advertising Facebook Media

To paraphrase a proverb on the inevitability of change, ‘It is astonishing how long things can continue and how quickly they can fall’. The NME’s swift announcement of a final issue certainly aligns with this prophecy.

2 min read

SVOD and the Emerging Video Content Bubble

Tim Mulligan

5 Mar 2018

Media and Marketing

Another week, another inflated data point around the expanding content offerings on premium video services. Netflix CEO David Wells announced on Tuesday, 27th February, that not only will Netflix spend $8 billion on content in 2018, but it will be commissioning up to 700 original series this year.

5 min read

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Could Hatch Be Rovio’s Answer To Satiating Shareholders In The Long Term?

Karol Severin

1 Mar 2018

Angry Birds Games hatch

Last week Rovio published preliminary information about its performance in Q4 and full year 2017, as well as its outlook for 2018. Rovio said it expects €297.2 million revenue for 2017, which is a growth of 55% year-on-year (17% growth between Q4 2016 and 2017).

4 min read

The Narrative Of Spotify’s Filing Is That The Best Is Yet To Come

Mark Mulligan

28 Feb 2018

Ad Supported Spotify Spotify dpo

Spotify just filed its F1 for its DPO. The most anticipated business event in the recorded music industry since, well…as long as most can remember, is one big step closer. The filing is a treasure trove of data and metrics, and while there won’t be too many surprisesfor anyone who follows the co...

5 min read

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Will AI Replace The Artist Altogether Or Will It Serve As Another Creation Tool?

Zach Fuller

28 Feb 2018

artificial intelligence electricity ernst gombrich

In covering tech trends, we try to avoid chasing after the latest buzzwords at MIDiA. Artificial Intelligence certainly ticks the boxes of Gartner’s famed hype cycle model , i.e. technologies that attract VC funding and obligatory media headlines before falling into a trough of disillusionment, of...

4 min read

Just What Is Tencent Up To With Streaming?

Mark Mulligan

28 Feb 2018

Anghami China Gaana

Tencent is building a global streaming empire. Back in December 2017 Tencent Music did a 10% equity swap deal with Spotify and now it has led a $115 million investment round for India-based streaming service Gaana.

2 min read

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