A report by The Information suggests that Spotify could be considering selling tickets for in-person & virtual events. It states that this move is a bid to improve relations with artists, rather than to compete with major event companies such as Vision Nine Group, which could come after protests began to be held worldwide in March 2021 to increase the amount that artists get paid for streaming.

Since then, we’ve seen the live event industry continue to take massive hits due to the COVID-19 pandemic and had Campaign groups such as WE MAKE EVENTS and WE ARE VIABLE call for the UK Government to have venues included in furlough schemes. Live streams also became more popular due to live music being prohibited. Now that Spotify is rumoured to use its data to throw its own concerts, we could see a new dawn for our cultural economy.

Spotify’s user-facing analytical platform Spotify for Artists has informed artists where their top fans are for a long time, as well as providing a plethora of other useful information. By using the Audience section of the analytics platform, artists can swim in the ocean of information about who their listeners are. This data is industry-changing when it’s applied to live events. This information empowers artists, and their management teams, with knowledge about where to promote their music – and where to play live.

With the sheer amount of data at their fingertips, the music streaming giant is in a prime position to throw their own concerts. Artists have been able to feature their Concert listings on their artist page for a while now – which aids users to see where and when their favourite artists are playing. Spotify has the tools to know where the best place to perform, promote to specific audiences and offer tickets via their already huge platform. What may seem a small move on the part of Spotify could send ripples through the music industry.

Following Spotify’s pre-recorded virtual events in June 2021, news of Spotify using its platform to boost artists’ income could be what we’ve all been waiting for. These virtual events were met with huge success & ‘validated’ their decision to look deeper into events, and featured The Black Keys and Rag’n’Bone Man to name just two. It’ll be exciting to see how this could potentially transform the industry at large.