The UK’s Entertainment Retailers Association released a report with forecasts for the region’s music streaming market. The analysis, from consultants OC&C, credited efforts by streaming services to target specific audiences with driving significant growth. Without those segments, OC&C predicted that music streaming would grow to between £1 billion and £1.1 billion in four years. With them, the sector is projected to be between £1.25 billion and £1.6 billion in that time frame.
The potential new platforms could take many forms, such as premium offerings for hardcore audiophiles or add-on services focused on a particular genre. The report also noted that current non-subscribers could be treated as a niche audience, and converting them to streaming listeners would add value.
“Our study indicates the UK music industry has a significant opportunity to increase the size of the market beyond even the most bullish expectations,” OC&C partner Pedro Sanches said. “It is clear that if the industry can come up with tailored offers which deliver value to specific groups of consumers then there’s a major prize at stake.”
“We commissioned this report to get an independent sense-check on the growth prospects for streaming,” said ERA CEO Kim Bayley. “It’s fair to say even we were surprised just how positive the results are. This is a significant piece of work showing how music can embrace the learnings of related leisure markets.”