Streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music have become incredibly popular in recent years, due in part to their vast libraries of commercial music. But how do these streaming services get the rights to stream all that music? And what happens when a song is played on these services?

In order to stream music on services such as Spotify and Apple Music, the streaming service must first obtain a licence from the copyright owner(s) of those song libraries. This process can be quite complex and lengthy, as the terms of the licence need to be negotiated between the copyright holder and the streaming service. Some of the things that may be included in a music licensing agreement include the length of the licence (term), the territories (single or multi-territories) in which the music will be streamed, and the amount of royalties that the streaming service will pay to the copyright holder(s).

For a music streaming service, there are usually 3 main sets of rights obtained:

• Master Rights (Record Labels)
• Publishing Rights (Song composers, writer contributors etc)
• PRO Rights (Performance Rights Organisations (public broadcasting))

Layering music into web3 and the metaverse is a complex task with lots of moving parts. Those parts can quickly devolve into technical and legal quicksand. With those pitfalls in mind, Digital Music News published this pocket survival guide in collaboration with B2B Streaming technology provider Tuned Global.

As companies continue to dip into the metaverse, complex implementation questions are quickly surrounding the use of music. Part of the reason is simple: just like real life, listeners want their virtual abodes to feature their favorite music. The metaverse wouldn’t feel ‘real’ without it.

Never heard of Plern? Here’s how an upstart Thai streaming music platform quickly topped 1 million app downloads despite heavy competition from Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music. The Tuned Global-powered platform launched just a few months ago.

Digital Music News published an in-deep case study following an interview with Asawin ‘Ant’ Rojmethatawee, EVP of Music Streaming Business at GMM Grammy and head of Plern

Music is an effective marketing tool - and in 2021, no one knows that better than mobile network operators. Telcos have been bundling their phone plans with music streaming service subscriptions for almost as long as the format has existed. But as they wake up to the advantages of bolting music-related content onto their existing offerings, some are even going one step further by launching their very own music streaming apps. 

Music Business Worldwide have interviewed Tuned Global CRO, Spiro Arkoudis to discuss the opportunities and challenges for mobile network providers who want to enter the music game and how companies such as mJams and True Digital are doing it.

In this episode of Stream by Stream, Spiro Arkoudis, CRO of Tuned Global demystifies the role of enriched metadata for the music streaming industry with Jean-Luc Biaulet, co-creator of Music Story.

What are the risks of inaccurate or sloppy metadata? How do Deezer and other digital music services boost user engagement through enriched music metadata? What criteria should a DSP (Digital Service Provider) look at when they are looking for a metadata provider?

The drone industry has grown exponentially in the past few months, with the market size projected to be worth $63.6 billion in the next four years. This growth is expected to occur because of its increased usage in agriculture, construction, mining, telecommunications, law enforcement, and, more recently, music entertainment. More specifically, drones are being utilized in a lot of music events, as seen during One Republic and SZA concerts earlier this year.

In fact, below are some of the ways drones are signifying the future of music events.

The commercial potential of music streaming is steadily rising worldwide. In 2020 alone, the IFPI announced that music streaming generated US$13.4 billion; that’s 62.1% of global revenue from recorded music that year. In addition to standalone streaming services and telcos with built-in streaming apps, music is also increasingly being integrated into different verticals such as gaming, fitness, social media.

These developments make music streaming a potentially lucrative opportunity – not just for mainstream international services such as Spotify and Apple Music, but also for niche services in emerging markets where there’s still a lot of room for growth. Music streaming may be a global phenomenon, but regionality still matters, and the demand for localized services is higher than ever.

I recently spoke with Tuned Global’s Chief Revenue Officer, Spiro Arkoudis, about the challenges and opportunities of launching streaming services in emerging markets. He shared some of Tuned Global’s insights from working in different regions across the globe.

In this episode of Stream by Stream, Spiro Arkoudis, CRO of Tuned Global talks to Hazel Savage, the CEO and co-founder of Musiio about AI in music.

What is Artificial Intelligence in a digital music world? How does AI help personalisation and user engagement for a streaming service? How have companies such as Epidemic Sound improved their user experience using Musiio AI music technology?

Musically recently published this report about the Chilean music market. Chile’s recorded music Market gained its 11th straight year of growth in 2020, according to local Music Ally sources, helping to cement its place as one of Latin America’s most vibrant digital music industries. While Chile took to streaming relatively late, this industry is performing well with a 56.2% income growth in 2020. The leading digital music services in Chile are Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer and YouTube Music. But March 2021 saw the launch of a new competitor called PortalDisc, the first 100% Chilean music streaming service.

It's no secret, pandemic or no pandemic, streaming is the predominant form of music consumption today. No doubt, the Western music streaming world is dominated by services such as Spotify and Apple Music that offer an ‘everything for everyone’ menu. We are, however, witnessing a rise of services that dig deeper and offer a specialist take based on geography, genre or even leisure activity. In fact, Spotify’s revenue growth is slowing down, partly due to the rise of local services in emerging markets. Taking all of that into consideration, is music heading in a similar direction to the TV world where consumers are prepared to pay for a range of different subscriptions with different types of content rather than just sticking with one option?