Consumers Surprise Industry with New Information About Music Spend

MusiComms Survey Shows People Do Care About the Future of Music; Technology Partnerships Critical to Future Distribution Models

Nashville, TN – January 5, 2018 – MusiComms™, the leading organization dedicated to the future of music distribution, announced today the results of its latest industry research. The survey, which was conducted in Q4 2017, polled 5,000 consumers across all demographics and regions across the United States.

How much will consumers pay for music? Will they ever pay more? How will this type of information impact music business strategy? Those are the types of questions MusiComms posed to consumers in their latest survey. Here’s what they learned:

  • Most people get their music for free today. 52% of people indicated that they do not pay anything currently for their music. Of that number, 29% said their primary source is free AM/FM radio. That number was followed by 15% who listen to free Internet-based music services, and 7% referred to Internet video sites.
  • 40% of consumers polled will never pay more for music. When asked what would motivate consumers to pay more, a whopping 40% responded that they would never pay more.
  • 40% of consumers polled said they would pay more for music! A significantly important 25% said they would pay more if they knew it was better for artists and creators. 15% said they would pay more if they knew it could help save the music industry.
  • Some people will never pay for music. 17% of people said they will never pay for music.
  • People want their music at home from devices. When asked about accessibility, most people want their music from the Internet, and many of those people want it from an in-home device.
  • People buy music from technology companies and service providers. When asked where they will get their music, 23% percent said through a retailer, and 77% said everywhere else (TV provider, phone, electronics, car, utility).

“The recent survey results underscore the need for music companies to develop profitable, strategic distribution partnerships with technology companies and service providers in a continuously more digital world,” said Juliet Shavit, Executive Director of MusiComms. “2018 will be a critical year for these partnerships to help organize and standardize the metadata and analytics to make accurate reporting and profitability a true possibility.”

To receive the full survey results or learn more about the findings, contact Meredith Salefski at meredith@smartmarkusa.com.

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About MusiComms™
MusiComms™ is a global initiative dedicated to collaboration between the music and communications industries with the goal of seeking out new opportunities for innovation and long-term sustainability and profitability of both markets.

As a consortium, MusiComms™ hosts a number of activities that bring together leadership from music and technology-driven industries to develop, innovate and implement new revenue models and marketing opportunities, with the ultimate goal of leveraging music to distinguish brand and fuel business opportunities.