Why Are Streaming Numbers Down During Quarantine?

Much like the oft-covered travel, hospitality, and food industries, live events and music have been among the hardest-hit areas of the private sector during the coronavirus pandemic. As countless musicians find themselves out of work with the gig economy grinding to a standstill, the problems run deeper. Much deeper.

It’s not just the musicians that are out of work. It’s nearly everyone in the industry, from venue security to the production crew, managers, and everyone in between. In an understandable move, Amazon recently halted CD and vinyl record shipments, directing company resources toward the pandemic and more essential goods. As the world’s largest music retailer, this, along with the mass shutdown of music stores across the country, aided in generating the worst week for album sales since Nielson Music/MRC Data began tracking music sales nearly 30 years ago. According to Billboard, album sales fell to 1.52 million during the week of March 12th-19th, a drop of 29 percent. That number includes digital albums, CDs, vinyl LPs, and even cassettes. It should be noted, however, that physical album sales have been in decline for years, though they have never dipped below 1 million…until now.

While the decline in album sales can be easily explained, what is a bit more perplexing is the decline in streaming numbers. One would think that with millions of people staying home, adhering to the social distancing and self-quarantine guidelines set forth by federal, state, and local governments, people would stream more music with their extra free time. That’s not the case at all.

In fact, streaming numbers during these times of quarantine have fallen 7.6 percent according to Variety.

Wedbush Securities managing director Daniel Ives told the outlet, “Based on our data analysis over the last two weeks, TV streaming engagement is up 15-17 percent week over week.” Simply put, people are consuming more content that provides a level of human-to-human interaction, rather than music. Variety reported that Nielson Media Research data shows a 60 percent rise in TV viewing, with outlets like CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC seeing major bumps in engagement, as much as 119 percent. Additionally, streaming services like Apple TV, Netflix, and Disney+ have seen a similar rise in new users, though to a lesser degree.

“When it first happens, people are locked into the news,” a major record label executive told Variety. “I think both Italy and Spain showed us that after the dips it comes back, so I expect we’ll return to at least previous numbers, and then with subscriber growth, we will ultimately be up. But, gaming and video, television and Netlflix—they’re the short-term winners.”

Changes in daily-routines could have had an impact as well. With gyms, restaurants, and offices closed, people are home more than ever. While people work at home, many are choosing to have the news on in the background as opposed to music. Furthermore, without a daily commute, fewer people are streaming during their drive to work because, for many, work is now in their living room or home office.

“If you look at (Spotify’s) built-in car application, it was down over 20 percent listening, which makes sense,” a Los Angeles-based senior executive explained to Variety.

It’s not all bad news for the music industry, however, as BBC noted a rise in radio engagement.

“People turn to us during significant events for our news and analysis,” BBC Radio and Education director James Purnell told the BBC. “Last week, we saw record live listening on BBC Sounds,” he continued.

We have also seen industry professionals explore modern platforms in higher numbers as well. Over the past few weeks, a myriad of organizations, musicians, and bands have offered live and archival webcasts to keep their fans engaged. Companies like Verizon have detailed webcast series with headlining performances by artists like Dave Matthews. Bands like Dead & Company, Phish, and Tedeschi Trucks Band have even started their own weekly webcasts.

Likewise, as the country (and world) deals with the onslaught of festival cancellations—with events like Bonaroo, Coachella, Ultra, and more announcing postponements—companies like 11E1even and nugs.tv have crafted virtual festivals.

In the past two weeks, the two organizations announced the Live From Out There virtual festival series, which sees bands like Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, Goose, Twiddle, Aqueous, Magic Beans, Kitchen Dwellers, and many more performing live for thousands of fans from their self-quarantine locations; offering a reprieve from the hardships of social distancing and lack of live music to those who crave it most.

All in all, the industry will deal with the newfound music landscape for weeks, months, and perhaps years on end. But, much like nearly every other time in human history, they are sure to adapt and face the challenges head-on with creative solutions and a desirable end in mind.