Music professionals are being challenged working within the constraints of today’s music industry. The pandemic is gumming up workflow between artists, and many complications are arising from trying to work with the new changes coming about in the music industry.
With streaming music on the rise, the advent of streaming live performances, and even virtual concerts played out in video games collecting millions of views in a single sitting, music professionals need better tools to help them navigate the current world.
Streaming on the Rise
The current music industry is facing one of the biggest downturns in its entire history. Live concerts have been all but killed off due to the pandemic and social distancing practice (for the health and safety of everyone). CISAC in their Global Collections Report estimates between 20-35% decrease in revenue in 2020, around €2 - 3.5 billion or $2.3 – 4.1 billion lost.
However, music streaming is still rising. Spotify is seeing a rise to 130 million subscribers during the pandemic, bringing an estimated yearly increase in users up around 30%. Even if the music streaming platforms are still making ends meet, the whole music business has shaken up.
Streaming was already one of the main sources of revenue for many music labels to survive through this tough time. These music professionals require tools to help them manage their songs and metadata, especially now that the whole industry relies even more on royalties and digital streams of revenues. Reprtoir’s Software Suite includes an online and secured CMS specifically dedicated to audio files and metadata management, for all music catalogs. This solution is Catalog Management.
Good news: these products are available for free under 100 tracks and 100 works, so you can test drive the solution!
With streaming services, releasing musical works to distributors and aggregators can be a hassle. Right now, it might even take more of your time. Distribution can be such a headache that many people spend too much time sorting out distribution methods instead of working on their creative efforts. Reprtoir’s Release Builder allows users to easily select albums from their catalogs and release them with the greatest of control to distributors.
Socially Distant Collaboration Tools
With the pandemic keeping people home (and safe through social distancing), the music industry is facing challenges with having artists and their teams collaborate and work with each other. The music industry is a very social field, requiring many people to come together to produce amazing pieces to then be distributed.
However, some artists and writers are finding this distance to be an interesting break from the change, like Poo Bear, a long-time collaborator with Justin Bieber states in an interview with Rolling Stone, “If anything it makes you pay even more attention. I’m listening harder, making sure I don’t miss anything.” But Zoom calls and some emails aren’t enough to get everything sorted; the music industry needs smarter tools to take care of business while people can’t directly interact with each other.
More than creation in itself, keeping track of Contributors, Rights Holders and other actors involved in producing the tracks in a music catalog is a major necessity. Obviously, this means you need an internal tool to manage these audio files, link music metadata and collaborate with your team. This is Audio Manager, replacing SpreadSheets and internally developed solutions, why?
This workspace gathering all important data on your music business needs to be efficient and easily manageable when it comes to dealing with clients or partners, meaning it has to be compatible with the outside world. An efficient workspace means you get to focus on the core of your activity.
Additionally, digital revenues are the main source of revenue for all artists now. Even more than before, royalties are at the center of attention for music professionals. We are developing RoyaltY Management at Reprtoir, testing as a private beta with our users to create the best royalty accounting software. If you’re willing to be a part of it, tell us here!
Sync for Exposure
With the music industry hurting a little, people are trying to find new ways to put their music out into the world and generate revenue and more listeners. One method to bring listeners to discover music comes in the form of licensing music for sync in TV shows, movies, and video games.
Despite the hit the sync sector took, media is still being created that requires some songs to be used. In the highly anticipated movie Dune, a powerful cover of Pink Floyd’s “Eclipse” sparked great interest in millennials and people who haven’t had the chance to listen to the classic album Dark Side of the Moon. According to Alpha Data, Pink Floyd’s “Eclipse” saw a 50 percent increase in streams, and 1,750 percent in digital sales.
As the world evolves and changes, sync is still a valuable music sector that can be leveraged to generate new listeners and retain some revenue lost during these times. Reprtoir has a specific tool called Music Sharing Solution which allows music professionals to create playlists in their catalogs and send them to clients. The service includes metadata collection to easily see exactly who has viewed the tracks by contact tracing, how many times they listened or downloaded, and how long they listened to each song. With this tool, music professionals can quickly assess what their clients like and prefer and better tailor their selections.
All in all, Reprtoir could be the right option for music professionals getting up to speed in the current landscape. Give us a call or ask for a free demo to see how we can help optimize your business!
