Bulletin: Streaming & APAC (Audio)
Each week, Weber Shandwick’s APAC Intelligence Bulletin shares the key developments shaping business sectors and markets throughout the Asia Pacific region.
- With the world’s leading music streaming platform facing mounting criticisms from major stakeholders, streaming audio is preparing for sector-wide change
- In Asia, that change is appearing in the form of more tailored streaming solutions and increasing investment in more diverse streaming categories
- The growth in the sector is likely to continue, but the challenge for brands and communicators will be adapting to a less-centralised sector
As of January 2022, nearly 50% of the global streaming audio market was held by two brands. The world’s leading music streaming platform has been losing market share for three years. In recent weeks, criticism of the platform’s ethics around misinformation and artist compensation have seen the business lose US$2 billion in market capital.
Shifting values
Multiple competitor brands used criticism of the market leader to appeal to new subscribers. However, the scrutiny of the world’s most popular platform has led to a greater discussion around the ethics and expectations of audio streaming as a sector. The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority has announced plans to investigate the ethics of audio streaming in the coming months.
In Asia, change is taking shape more rapidly. The past year, for example, has seen an influx of more specialised streaming platforms emerge across the region. A streaming service for music in the language of Malayalam recently launched in India. In Thailand, the country’s largest music industry brand just launched a Thai-language streaming service. A Pacific Islands platform has recently expanded to Papua New Guinea.
It’s representative of a fracturing and localising of the global streaming audio sector. It’s a trend that’s also seen in the rising investment in different types of audio streaming, both within Asia and abroad. Taiwan’s second-largest telecom brand has just partnered with the market’s leading podcast and radio company. The world’s second most popular platform launched a high-fidelity lossless audio feature in late 2021.
A more diverse world
These moves and investments mirror what is unfolding on the global stage. The market leader has invested extensively in podcasts, audiobooks, and content from marginalised creators in the past year. One of its chief competitors recently finalised a deal with China’s premier streaming audio company to ensure a greater presence of Chinese content on the platform.
In Asia and abroad, audio streaming is likely to see ongoing growth. The value of Asia’s music streaming market is expected to growth to US$13 billion by 2027. However, that growth is likely to be accompanied by substantial disruption. With new audio types, languages, investors, and technologies, consumers and businesses can anticipate a much more diverse and varied sector in the coming years.
Further reading
APAC Intelligence Signals: Understanding 2021 & Entering 2022
The State of APAC’s Economies in 2022
Employee Motivation & The Great Resignation in APAC
This briefing was prepared by Weber Shandwick’s Insight & Intelligence team in Singapore.
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