Digital entertainment and retail association ERA has opened membership to the wider entertainment industry.
The move is in response to growing demand for its insight, analysis and event services, according to a statement.
A new upgraded affiliate membership tier will allow companies to join outside its core member base of digital services and retailers selling music, video and games. A series of associate member tiers based on turnover will allow access to companies of all sizes with revenues of less than £1 million to more than £100m.
Affiliate membership of ERA offers benefits including access to ERA’s consumer tracking study, now in its 12 year; its bespoke research strand, whose early work covered superfans; and weekly, monthly and annual analyses of music, video and games market data.
Membership also offers preferential rates for submissions to Record Store Day, as well as discounts to the Record Store Day Album Of The Month programme.
ERA’s growing slate of events including its annual Independent Retail Conference, summer party and awards.
ERA CEO Kim Bayley said: “For more than 30 years membership of ERA has been restricted primarily to retailers and then digital services, but growing demand from outside our immediate sector means it makes sense to open things up.”
Demand is expected initially from technology companies, distributors and content owners who target ERA’s members.
Bayley added: “Historically, retailers were viewed as passive outlets for entertainment, but the work of digital services in driving the streaming revolution and physical retailers in nurturing the vinyl revival means suppliers recognise the need to stay close to ERA’s members.”
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