Music is increasingly being embedded in gaming platforms, health technologies, children’s experiences and niche cultural ecosystems. This article explores how these emerging environments could shape the next phase of music monetisation.

This article is part of Tuned Global’s SXSW series exploring the future of streaming in a superfan era. The series examines four themes shaping the next chapter of the music industry: fan engagement, monetisation beyond streaming, ecosystem integrity and new vertical opportunities.

The music streaming industry is entering a superfan era where engagement signals such as saves, comments and fan interaction increasingly matter more than passive listening. This article explores how streaming platforms are evolving beyond plays, and what it means for monetisation, discovery and fan relationships.

In the lead-up to SXSW, Tuned Global CEO Con Raso joined industry leaders including Brian Zisook (Audiomack), Jordan Pettinato (SoundCloud) and Janishia Jones (Encore Music Technologies) to discuss the future of streaming in a superfan era.

This series explores four themes shaping the next chapter of the music industry: fan engagement, monetisation beyond streaming, ecosystem integrity and new vertical opportunities.

As music streaming matures, new monetisation models are emerging beyond traditional DSP royalties. This article explores how direct-to-fan revenue, gaming environments, wellness applications and niche platforms are creating new opportunities for artists and music companies.

This article is part of Tuned Global’s SXSW series exploring the future of streaming in a superfan era. The series examines four themes shaping the next chapter of the music industry: fan engagement, monetisation beyond streaming, ecosystem integrity and new vertical opportunities.

Artificial streaming manipulation, AI-generated content and evolving licensing models are raising new challenges for the music streaming ecosystem. This article explores how fraud, fairness and infrastructure will shape the future health of the music streaming ecosystem.

This article is part of Tuned Global’s SXSW series exploring the future of streaming in a superfan era. The series examines four themes shaping the next chapter of the music industry: fan engagement, monetisation beyond streaming, ecosystem integrity and new vertical opportunities.

When your platform relies on AI tagging to power search, discovery or sync workflows, replacing a provider is not a minor change. It affects metadata integrity, user experience, internal workflows and backend architecture.

Musiio by SoundCloud has recently announced that it will stop operating as a B2B service, leaving many of its clients evaluating alternative solutions and reassessing their tagging infrastructure.

Tagging underpins search relevance, recommendation accuracy, sync matching and long-tail surfacing. Changing the engine behind those systems is therefore not simply a vendor swap. It is a structural shift in how discovery operates within your platform.

If you are reviewing alternatives, here is what to consider and what is possible with a modern tagging ecosystem.

This article focuses on tagging and metadata signals and how they feed your existing search and discovery systems.

As 2026 gets underway, the music industry is entering a period of accelerated technological and commercial change. From AI-driven fraud to new fan monetisation models and real-time music in gaming, the way music is created, distributed, protected and experienced is evolving faster than ever.

Con Raso, Managing Director of Tuned Global, shares his perspective on seven key trends that are expected to define the year ahead and reshape how the industry operates.

SXSW’s first-ever London edition brought a powerful collision of industries, ideas and technologies — from AI pioneers and space entrepreneurs to music legends and cultural trailblazers. Over six days in Shoreditch, eight standout themes emerged, each with the potential to redefine how we create, distribute and experience music.

For a deeper dive into the festival’s insights, download the full SXSW Trends Report here.

Here’s Tuned Global’s take on how these trends could shape the future of music technology and influence user behaviour.

As AI and digital health platforms adopt music as a therapeutic tool, getting caught up in data and delivery is easy. But music’s true impact has always been its emotional resonance. In the race to build smarter systems, we can’t afford to lose sight of the very thing that makes music matter—how it makes people feel. This blog explores why emotion must be considered a core function, not a bonus feature, in music-based interventions. It looks at how emotional connection drives real-world outcomes in settings like dementia care and anxiety treatment, and why balancing clinical safety with human feeling is essential to building truly effective therapeutic experiences.

Streaming won the war for ears — now it has to win hearts. After years of explosive growth, the industry is now plateauing in mature markets. According to this recent Co-lab article by Musically and Tuned Global MD Con Raso, the next wave won’t come from more passive listening. It’ll come from turning listeners into creators — remixers, collaborators, and co-authors of the music they love. This isn’t a trend: it’s a transformation. And it’s already underway.

Gaming now earns more than music and film combined — and music is becoming core to gameplay. Music Business Worldwide covered the interesting conversation from the Music Tectonics conference, where leaders from Riot Games, Epic Games, and Tuned Global and Vickie Naumann unpack how in-game music, virtual bands, and licensing tech are reshaping fan engagement and artist discovery. Read a full summary of their discussion or watch the full panel video.