Business Strategy Reports from MIDiA Research

Cover image for Independent Artist Survey

Independent Artist Survey
Aspirations That Will Reshape an Industry

Mark Mulligan

10 Jan 2020

This report presents the findings of MIDiA’s 2019 independent artist survey. Companies and brands mentioned in this report: AWAL, BMG Music Rights, CD Baby, Kobalt, Tunecore, Amuse

Cover image for Music Subscriber Market Shares 3.0

Music Subscriber Market Shares 3.0
The Big Three Dominate

Mark Mulligan

17 Dec 2019

Subscriptions Streaming Music Subscriptions

This report presents key figures from MIDiA’s global music subscriber market shares model. The full dataset is published alongside this report with quarterly data from Q4 2015 to Q2 2019 for 23 streaming services across 30 different markets. Companies...

The Paywall Paradox
Ring Fencing Advertising’s Most Valuable Consumers

Mark Mulligan

12 Dec 2019

Spotify Marketing Amazon

Music and video subscribers are the most influential technology and brand advocates amongst their peer groups and are therefore the most valuable users for advertisers and brands to reach. They are consuming progressively more content behind paywalls, which, as predominately ad-free spaces, represents a growing challenge for marketers.

20/20 Vision
MIDiA Research Predictions 2020

Alistair Taylor, Amanda Stears, Karol Severin, Keith Jopling, Mark Mulligan, Tim Mulligan and Zach Fuller

10 Dec 2019

Apple Spotify Discovery

In this report MIDiA Research analysts present their predictions for what will be the big trends in digital media and tech across music, video, media, brands, marketing, games and sports in 2020 and the coming decade. Companies and brands mentioned in...

Streaming Pricing
Solid Outlook but Slowing Demand

Mark Mulligan

4 Dec 2019

Willingness to pay Apple Netflix

Across a wide selection of Western countries, the streaming music and video subscription markets are reaching a high degree of maturity. As saturation for core products nears, further growth will depend upon factors such as pricing innovation and multiple subscriptions per household.

Cover image for Spotify Podcast Strategy

Spotify Podcast Strategy
Strong Start, Long Way to Go

Mark Mulligan

28 Nov 2019

Spotify Spotify Pandora

Spotify has bet big on podcasts, viewing them as a means to multiple strategic ends. After a number of major acquisitions, Spotify is beginning to deliver meaningful audience and revenue numbers. Though it is still early days for Spotify’s podcast strategy, there is clear long-term potential to transform the wider audio landscape.

Cover image for Spotify Earnings Q3 2019

Spotify Earnings Q3 2019
Up on Most Counts

Mark Mulligan

15 Nov 2019

Subscriptions Streaming Streaming Music

Q3 2019 was a quarter of mixed fortunes for Spotify, with its subscriber base showing good, consistent growth, podcasts making a solid early showing, emerging markets demonstrating promise but ad revenue falling short. Companies and brands mentioned in...

Playlist Strategies 2020

Keith Jopling

12 Nov 2019

Spotify YouTube SoundCloud

Playlists have become a core music consumption habit and, in turn, one of the most valuable marketing commodities in music. A prominent playlist placement remains a key objective of most new release strategies and is a higher priority than radio play for many artists.

Sports Rights
Measuring the ROI for Streaming

Alistair Taylor

30 Oct 2019

Subscriptions Amazon subscribers

Measuring streaming sports audience engagement is paramount when determining which rights mix consumers are actually willing to pay for. Netflix has shown that in a saturated market, retaining consumer attention can cost twice as much as it did previously to retain the same level of user engagement.

US Streaming Video
How Ad Supported Will Reshape the Market

Tim Mulligan

11 Oct 2019

Streaming Apple YouTube

In the shift to streaming, advertising has been sidelined by the growth of streaming video on demand (SVOD) in the US video market. However, Hulu’s growth, along with increasing competition for consumers’ digital wallet, is helping to make the case that there is an opportunity to replicate traditional pay-TV’s subscription and advertising mod...

Music Publishing
A Full-Stack Revolution

Mark Mulligan

9 Oct 2019

Spotify Music publishing Pandora

Tencent’s bid for 10% of Universal Music Group has set a new high-water mark for what risks becoming an overheated music rights mergers and acquisitions (M&A) sector. However, investment appetite remains strong and catalogue supply constrained, so there will be plenty more activity before the inevitable contraction.

The Playlist Revolution
Streaming’s Battleground

Zach Fuller

30 Sep 2019

Streaming Music Apple Spotify

Playlists are swiftly becoming the lingua franca of the music streaming economy. While most closely associated with Spotify, playlists are now central to streaming as an entire sector. While playlists may not yet have become the dominant use case for streaming music in the way that binge watching is for video, they are transforming how audiences co...

Cover image for Spotify Q2 2019 Earnings

Spotify Q2 2019 Earnings
Mature Markets Still the Engine Room of Growth

Mark Mulligan

29 Aug 2019

Subscriptions Streaming Streaming Music

Q2 2019 was another solid quarter for Spotify, adding the same number of subscribers it typically does in promotional quarters. Core metrics such as churn and average revenue per user (ARPU) all moved in the right direction, but Spotify remains out of contract with two major label partners and needs emerging markets’ subscriber growth to start pi...

Cover image for The Global Music Publishing Market

The Global Music Publishing Market
Streaming Shifts the Conversation

Zach Fuller

22 Aug 2019

Apple Spotify Spotify

The effects of music streaming having supplanted both the download and the CD as the mainstream format for recorded music (accounting for 50% of total recorded revenue in 2018) are being keenly felt across the music publishing industry. The DNA of streaming consumption (playlists, lower mechanical royalties, less revenue on average for superstar ca...

State of the Podcast Nation

Mark Mulligan

23 Jul 2019

Apple Spotify Radio

Podcasts are an overnight success many years in the making. Podcasts were first added to Apple’s iTunes ecosystem in 2005, only to then spend a long time in the shadows. Now, however, they occupy the centre stage with radio companies, podcast vendors, streaming services and traditional media companies alike all trying to carve out roles.

Independent Artists
The Music Industry Rewritten

Mark Mulligan

12 Jul 2019

Creators Labels rhapsody

The rise of independent artists is one of the most important changes to happen to the modern recorded music business. While traditional label models still dominate, ever more artists are pursuing non-traditional alternatives, ranging from self-releasing through to joint-venture label service deals with majors.

Cover image for Sports and the Tech Majors

Sports and the Tech Majors
A Competitive Partnership

Alistair Taylor

5 Jul 2019

Free Report

Apple Amazon Apple TV

The big gap in streaming video’s content mix has historically been sports. This is now changing through a combination of disruptive challenger sports subscription video on demand (SVOD) services such as DAZN accelerating its rights and territory offerings alongside the increased interest being shown by the tech majors – notably Amazon and Faceb...

State of the Music Publishing Nation

Mark Mulligan and Zach Fuller

20 Jun 2019

Spotify Spotify Kobalt

This report, a first from MIDiA dedicated to the music publishing space, addresses the most important trends in the industry. With 2018 seeing revenues continue their accelerated growth and music publishing emerging as an asset class, now is opportune to reflect on one of the often misunderstood and hence undervalued aspects of the recorded music i...

Spotify Q1 2019 Earnings

Mark Mulligan

31 May 2019

Subscriptions Streaming Streaming Music

Q1 2019 was a quarter of milestones for Spotify, hitting 100 million subscribers, launching in India and becoming a podcast company. However, it was also a quarter in which a number of metrics started to soften. With the exception of ad revenue, none of these subtle shifts are enough on their own to provoke any serious concern.

Cover image for State of the Streaming Nation 3.0

State of the Streaming Nation 3.0
Multi-Paced Growth

Mark Mulligan

28 May 2019

Subscriptions Streaming Streaming Music

2018 was yet another strong year for streaming music growth, with the leading streaming services consolidating their market shares. Consumer adoption continues to grow but as leading markets mature, future growth will depend upon mid-tier markets and later on emerging markets.

Reports: Business Strategy