Primephonic have published the 2019 State of Music Streaming report which is an online study into the streaming experiences of users. Conducted by YouGov and sponsored by the classical music streamer they have published a summary of their findings in a recent blog posting. The survey asked US adults who had streamed music in the past six months about their experiences and found that 60% of music streamers were frustrated by their streaming experience. The 2019 State of Music Streaming report reveals what music streamers want from their listening experience and finding from the study are summarised below.
2019 State of Music Streaming
How Can Streaming Improve?
When asked about specific frustrations and pain points respondents indicated these four areas needed work.
- Searchability: 73% – and over half of streaming subscribers (56%) – didn’t indicate feeling that they can always easily find the exact artist, album or song they’re looking for on streaming services
- Catalogue: 27% reported that streaming services have the music they’re looking for, indicating that the majority of Americans (73%) would not say they are satisfied with the music available on their streaming platforms
- Recommendations: The majority of Americans (74%) – and nearly 6 in 10 (57%) streaming subscribers – fell short of endorsing music streaming platforms as doing a good job of introducing them to music they haven’t heard before
- Audio Quality: Nearly a third (32%) – and nearly half of subscribers (45%) – say that audio quality is an important factor when streaming their favourite music, something that few streaming services on the market currently prioritize
This partially explains why just 21% of Americans report they currently have a paid streaming service: there is therefore a massive opportunity for streaming platforms willing to go the extra mile and offer a service that truly meets consumers expectations.
Thomas Steffens, CEO of Primephonic, said, “We’ve entered a time where consumers value experience above all else. Given just 21% of Americans are currently paying for streaming services, there’s a massive missed opportunity in the music streaming industry. We must become better, as an industry, at removing frustrations from the streaming experience in order to capitalize on that revenue. Industry players that are able to truly answer the unmet needs of listeners will rise to the top, giving their subscribers better opportunities to discover and share music, becoming the true music streaming leader.”
Hitting the Right Price Point
When it comes to what Americans are willing to pay to stream music:
- $10 is the sweet spot, with 51% of those Americans willing to pay for a streaming service preferring to pay less than $10
- 49% would be willing to pay more than $10 (with 34% specifying that they’d pay $10-$15)
- When it comes to experience, a quarter of those who already have paid streaming music subscriptions (25%) are willing to pay more for a streaming service that meets all their needs, meaning platforms are missing out on a massive revenue opportunity.
- Nearly 2 in 10 (18%) of currently paid subscribers (9 million) say they’d pay extra for a streaming service if it meant they’d receive more artist and song options
- 1 in 9 (11%) would pay for a streaming service with a better ability to search for a specific artist or genre
Niche Genres are Left in the Dust
In a world dominated by pop music Americans still have an appetite for niche genres like classical music. However:
- 1 in 7 (14%) music streamers think it is frustrating that streaming platforms don’t cater to more niche genres
- 1 in 11 (9%) would pay for a streaming service specifically dedicated to their favourite genre, suggesting that the niche genre streaming market could be a $1Bn+ market
- Almost half of Americans (46%) cannot name a single classical composer. When respondents were asked to identify the composer of some of the most famous classical movements after listening to the pieces, 68% couldn’t identify Mozart as the composer of one of his most famous works, Le Nozze di Figaro
- 34% couldn’t identify Beethoven as the composer of 5th Symphony, one of his most famous works.
Artist Payouts
Only 9% of Americans consider the way streaming platforms compensate artists is fair. Though a problem for all artists, the payout problem is even larger for niche genres, given the standard per track model is designed for pop music and doesn’t work for the standard classical piece, which is much longer. Classical music therefore gets severely undercompensated compared to other genres.
According to the company, ‘Primephonic looks to answer many of these problems – focusing on an elevated digital experience for classical music fans, with a strong classical catalogue, more tailored search functions and a focus on a fair artist payout model.’
In July Primephonic expanded beyond its initial availability in the US, UK and the Netherlands, and is now accessible across Europe and in all of North America (including Canada).
