Livestreaming performances Research results

As promised in our January/February 2021 issue, Julia Haferkorn summarises the results of her research into the benefits, techniques and drawbacks of livestreaming musical performances, carried out with colleagues from Middlesex University and King’s College, London

Above: Julia Haferkorn

See page 27 for more information about our new resource and webinar on Online Real-time Music In autumn last year, having been awarded a grant as part of UK Research and Innovation’s rapid response to COVID-19, and in partnership with the ISM, fellow academics Sam Leak and Brian Kavanagh and I embarked on a six-month research project, investigating the practice of livestreaming of concerts.

Our aim was to find out more about musicians’ and live music fans’ attitudes to and expectations of livestreaming and, ultimately, to equip musicians with knowledge that would enable them to add livestreaming to their income generating activities. The Livestreaming Music in the UK report has now been published and is available from livestreamingmusic.uk

Based on a range of interviews and results from a survey filled in by 777 musicians and 707 live music fans, the report serves in part as an overview of current livestreaming practices and in part as a guide to the practical matters of livestreaming, such as monetisation methods, platforms and technical and licensing issues. It also aims to outline the role that livestreaming is playing during the COVID pandemic and its potential role in a post-pandemic world.

Five main themes have emerged from the research project.

1 Livestreaming makes live music accessible

A large market has emerged of audiences that are unable or reluctant to visit concerts in physical venues. The lower cost of ‘attending’ a livestreamed performance and the ability to attend without having to travel mean that live music fans can now access live music concerts that they wouldn’t be able to experience otherwise. Individuals benefiting from this include parents with young children or single parents, disabled or elderly people, people with little disposable income, people living far from a city with a music venue, and people suffering from claustrophobia or social anxiety. Crucially, livestreaming gives musicians access to audiences that are not reached by live concerts in physical venues. All survey participants saw this as an advantage, with 90% of musicians and 92% of live music fans agreeing that live streaming will in future be a successful tool to reach audiences unable or unwilling to go to physical venues.

2 Emotional engagement matters

Both audiences and musicians highly value the emotional engagement that occurs during live performance, with 95% of live music fans saying that emotional engagement with the artist during livestreamed concerts is important to them. Livestream viewers, who feel connected to the performer and fellow viewers, watch more livestreams, while those who don’t feel connected watch fewer. As it is difficult to replicate the type of communication experienced in physical venues, musicians need to develop their livestreamed performance practice, engaging with attenders in ways the new format allows. Interestingly, 82% of live music fans agreed that performers acknowledging individuals’ presence in the audience during a live stream made them feel connected.

Research also found that online audience communities form around livestreaming musicians across all genres. However, those communities are built over time and musicians need to livestream regularly to allow for a gradual increase in viewers.

3 Audiences are willing to pay

Live music fans agreed that livestreams should not be free to access and felt that the cost of accessing livestreams behind paywalls didn’t constitute a barrier to watching livestreams. There was particular willingness to pay for livestreams of good audio and video quality, for livestreams from locations that would otherwise be out of reach, and for

livestreams that made viewers feel more connected with the performer and other viewers. Interestingly, 78% of live music fans would be prepared to pay for a livestreamed concert by an artist who is offering some other livestreamed content for free.

While less value was placed by live music fans on livestreamed performances compared to performances in physical venues, our research has established that attenders are willing to pay for livestreamed performance. A shift in thinking about the value of livestreams and a move away from offering livestreamed concerts without any monetisation (such as donations or ticketing) is required.

4 Musicians are dissatisfied with income

Musicians’ biggest concern about livestreaming was not being able to earn enough income from streamed performances to make it worthwhile. As viewers value good quality in audio and video transmission of livestreamed performances and expect the technical aspects of livestreams to improve over time, musicians are required to invest in technical equipment and knowledge, which involves, at least initially, considerable effort and expense. While musicians with a large following can draw on technical support and are able to monetise livestreamed performances through ticket sales relatively easily, the majority of participating musicians were dissatisfied with the income they generated through livestreaming during the pandemic year. Livestreaming does have the potential to generate income for musicians; however, as it takes time to build an online audience, it needs to be seen as an additional rather than the main income source.

5 Livestreaming is here to stay

A large percentage of musicians and attenders agreed that once venues are safely open again, livestreaming will be a significant part of the music sector’s landscape. There was also agreement from both groups that livestreaming will be a successful tool for reaching new audiences from geographical locations the artist has not toured to and for reaching new audiences that might be reluctant or unable to visit physical venues.

Livestreaming offers new creative possibilities, particularly in terms of collaboration, presentation, and audience engagement. Rather than attempting to replicate the situation of live concerts in physical venues, musicians would do well to explore the new possibilities. Questions remain about how livestreamed concerts will be used within the music industry’s ecosystem but there is little doubt that the format is here to stay.

This research was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) as part of UK Research and Innovation’s rapid response to COVID-19 and carried out in partnership with the ISM, the Musicians’ Union, the Music Venue Trust, Serious Ltd, the Cultural Centre of Value, and the Sheffield Performer and Audience Research Centre (SPARC).

Further details on all aspects of the project can be found in the full report, which is published on livestreamingmusic.uk