Music giants are going all in on the metaverse
Image: Preechar Bowonkitwanchai/Shutterstock via ETX Daily Up
For Spotify, the metaverse is the future of music. The music streaming company has just launched its own virtual world on Roblox, one of the most popular digital spaces along with Decentraland and The Sandbox. It takes the form of several islands where players can interact with avatars of their favorite artists or access new content. They can also complete quests to unlock virtual merchandise that can be used anywhere in the video game platform.
While the various activities are still limited at this stage, Spotify will soon offer gamers the chance to explore a theme park dedicated exclusively to the world of K-pop. They will be able to meet avatars of South Korean boy band Stray Kids and singer Sunmi.
“Spotify immerses users in a world of audio no matter how or where they’re listening. Now, with Spotify Island on Roblox, we’re bringing new, unique experiences to fans and artists alike,” Daniel Ek’s company said in a statement.
Everyone into the metaverse
With Spotify Island, the Swedish group is offering up a little taste of what’s to come for music fans in the not-so-distant future. It follows in the footsteps of United States-based Epic Games, which in April 2020 managed to draw 12.3 million Fortnite players to a never-before-seen (and entirely virtual) concert by Travis Scott. In total, 27.7 million viewers headed to the online video game to experience the monumental show of the American rapper, entitled “Astronomical,” after four more broadcasts of the event.
Spotify is not the only player in the music industry looking to enter the metaverse. Warner Music Group has purchased a digital parcel on The Sandbox platform to build a property that doubles as a music theme park and concert venue.
“On the LAND, we’ll develop persistent, immersive social music experiences that defy real-world limitations and allow our artists and their fans to engage like never before,”said Oana Ruxandra, chief digital officer and executive vice president for business development at Warner Music Group.
Meanwhile, Universal Music aims to make its entry into virtual worlds through a music group composed of three virtual primates from the Bored Ape Yacht Club collection and another primate from the Mutant Ape Yacht Club collection. Each one is assigned a personality and a story of its own. The group will perform virtual concerts, as well as participate in video games on online platforms.
Bring gamers to the fore
Although the metaverse is still in its infancy, this digital replica of the physical world has the potential to become a genuine El Dorado for the music industry. The major players all hope to capitalize on the new sources of revenue that the development of this virtual universe promises. For Universal Music, the idea is to make money by selling NFTs related to Kingship activities such as unreleased tracks, tickets to exclusive events or virtual merchandise. Spotify hopes to do the same with its islands on Roblox.
But efforts are still required to engage the music lovers of tomorrow. Investing in the metaverse is above all a way for the music giants to attract new audiences, chief among them, video game players. And for good reason: the most passionate gamers are also the most dedicated music fans, according to a report Twitch conducted with MIDiA Research. While subscribers to a music streaming service spend an average of 6.9 hours engaged in their favorite activity, that number jumps to 7.6 hours for video game enthusiasts. They also do not spare any expense when it comes to indulging their passion. One in five gamers buy merchandise to support their favorite artists, while only 8% of average consumers do so.
While the advent of the metaverse marks a crucial step in bringing together music and video gaming, younger generations remain skeptical about this new technology. Only 9% of American teenagers plan to buy a virtual reality headset to explore these virtual worlds, according to a study by investment bank Piper Sandler.
The French seem to be more curious about the infinite possibilities offered by the metaverse: 22% of 18 to 25 year-olds in France frequent these accessible alternative worlds, according to the Heaven agency. It is possible that the arrival of Spotify and others in the metaverse will encourage them to take the plunge. JB
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