Music Streaming Market Sees Increased Impact from Podcasts and Audiobooks

[Monthly Mixing] According to the latest Entertainment on Demand (EoD) report by marketing data analytics firm Kantar, new content formats such as podcasts and audiobooks are having an increasing influence on music streaming services.

On August 14 (local time), Kantar released an analysis of the music streaming industry in the UK, US, Australia, Germany, Spain, and France from April to June 2024 through their website.

The report shows that YouTube Music was the most adopted service in the second quarter of this year. Spotify also maintained a strong position, and overall loyalty to premium services appeared unaffected by price increases.

Craig Armer, Global Strategic Insight Director at Kantar, stated, "Many non-streamers are interested in music but hesitate due to costs. Services should focus on leveraging recommendations from satisfied existing users to attract this untapped audience."

He pointed out that it will be necessary to effectively meet the needs of diverse audiences while providing attractive content beyond music.

According to the analysis, in Q2 2024, 14% of new premium subscribers were attracted by a wide range of podcasts, and 11% by exclusive content. 29% of streaming users considered podcasts an important part of their lives, a 3% increase from last year.

Armer said, "The music streaming landscape is being reshaped by the growing diversity of audio content, from podcasts to audiobooks. There are important opportunities to engage older demographics who are less involved but show considerable potential."

Meanwhile, Spotify's recent integration of music streaming and audiobook services into a single premium bundle has led to issues with reduced mechanical royalty payments, prompting copyright organizations in the US to file lawsuits.

Spotify has requested the dismissal of the lawsuit in US federal court, arguing that the audiobooks included in the premium bundle have substantial value to be offered alongside the music streaming service.