Streaming continues to be the predominant method by which enthusiasts engage with musical content. Although tangible formats are experiencing a resurgence (notably vinyl records), the convenience of accessing one’s preferred tracks, albums, and artists at any location remains exceptionally appealing.
However, the ethical implications surrounding this practice remain contentious, as musicians do not seem to be reaping the full benefits of their creative endeavors. This is, in part, the rationale behind many artists encouraging their supporters to contribute directly through their personal websites, thereby enhancing their financial compensation for their artistic labor.
While digital service providers (DSPs) may be perceived as somewhat nefarious and are unlikely to disappear in the foreseeable future, it appears that Spotify is seeking to alter artists’ perceptions regarding the extent of benefits they can derive from leveraging their platform for music distribution.
That’s at least one way as to how Spotify is pitching this new agreement they have just struck with UMG. In a recent press release (via Uproxx), the industry titans said this multi-year deal (how many is unknown) is centered around “growth, innovation, and the advancement of artists’ and songwriters’ success.” This is how they are branding their vision of what they are calling “Steaming 2.0.”
Sir Lucian Grainge (CEO of UMG) and Daniel Ek (CEO of Spotify) are going to be presenting worthwhile changes for artists and consumers in the form of “new and evolving offers, new paid subscription tiers, bundling of music and non-music content, and a richer audio and visual content catalog.”
This is all a part of this potential “Super-Premium Tier” that UMG and Spotify are working on. You can see in the breakdown above what this could look like for users who decide they want to fork out some extra money a month to have the very best experience. Future incentives include, “early access to new music, priority access to deluxe editions, hi-res audio, listening party invites, and artist Q&A sessions.” If this does come to fruition, Spotify and UMG are expecting to have a higher retention rate.
Sir Lucian Grainge of UMG is very much looking forward to this extended partnership.
“This is precisely the kind of partnership development we envisioned.” Mr. Ek of Spotify added, “This partnership ensures we can continue to deliver on this promise by embracing the certainty that constant innovation is key to making paid music subscriptions even more attractive to a broader audience of fans around the world.”
