Photo Credit: Glenn Carstens-Peters
Music streaming during quarantine is on the decline, but what about subscriptions?
A new report entitled, “COVID-19: Tracking the Impact on the Entertainment Landscape” conducted by Nielsen Music provides some clues. 60% of the U.S. population is engaging more with entertainment media than before lockdown, but music is getting edged out by video.
24% of people responding to the survey said they added at least one new subscription service. A breakdown of that number reveals video subscriptions are growing much faster – but music is represented, too.
The tricky question is what happens to paid streaming music subscriptions.
81% said a new video subscription was added to their household, while 38% of respondents said they added music streaming during quarantine. Only 14% of those surveyed said their new subscription was gaming related. That suggests some stability or even an increase in premium music accounts, though Americans could make some non-essential chops as their finances get tighter. Indeed, that distinct possibility came out in a recent survey.
A group of 945 people was surveyed by Nielsen as a representation of the U.S. population. Data for the survey was collected between March 25th and March 29th. The study asked respondents about their subscription activity for over two weeks.
Photo Credit: Nielsen Music
TV, movies, and social media all rank higher than music streaming during quarantine measures.
News-watching received the most significant increase among all activities in the survey. Unsurprisingly, attending live events declined the most under the social lockdown.
64% of those respondents said they were actively listening to music. 87% said they were listening to their typical genres in music streaming, while 55% of respondents said they were listening to older, more familiar music. The main reason music consumption declined among workers is due to a lack of commute.
Those who are turning to music streaming during quarantine say they prefer their smartphone. 78% of respondents said their smartphone is their primary source of music streaming during quarantine measures.
Only 46% of people pointed to a laptop, while 33% said they use smart speakers. 30% reported using a desktop computer. Even music streaming from smart TVs (35%) outranked desktop computers, showing just how mobile-dependent we’ve become.