Deviate Digital CEO Sammy Andrews outlines what 2024 holds in store for the world of music and tech...
AI ALL THE WAY: THE MAKEOVER OF MARKETING
AI will take centre stage in marketing in 2024, especially around generative AI, predictive analytics, media buying, sentiment analysis, content generation, personalisation, customised prompts, automated tasks and a whole new level of marketing wizardry. Although it’s going to be hit and miss for a while yet, you’d better believe it’s about to reshape a lot of things you think you know.
AI AND THE FUTURE OF COPYRIGHT
I covered this a lot last year, but 2024 is going to be a big year for copyright – or what will be left of it – across all industries. We can already see some very established names and big entities hedging their bets with generative AI music and subscription models for creators and businesses. I’ve no doubt that those same companies have also already ingested every single work they own (and everything they don’t) to fuel those learnings. You should expect 2024 to be a huge year for copyright conversations and classification across all creative industries.
THE DILEMMA WITH DATA
Data privacy was a hot topic for both consumers and regulators in 2023. The technology and marketing world is gearing up for a roller-coaster ride fuelled by first-party data, transparency, privacy paranoia and consumer privacy regulations. You’ll be hearing a lot about first-party data and the death of the cookie in 2024.
SOCIAL COMMERCE SPECTACLE
Social commerce is the potential superhero of both inbound and outbound marketing for online retailers. It’s not just a shopping spree, it’s a social extravaganza. Picture this: e-commerce meets social media, and they become the ultimate power couple. Social shopping is already changing the traditional retail journey in non-Western markets, building relationships and boosting sales through social media, and I predict we’re going to start to see big advancements this year in the UK. I have no doubt TikTok will lead this charge.
HYPER-PERSONALISATION
Today’s consumers want more than just a one-size-fits-all experience. With data flowing from everywhere – social media, websites, even physical stores – marketers are turning into wizards with sophisticated analytics. The result? A hyper-personalised version of marketing that caters to an individual’s tastes. Big data and machine learning are evolving rapidly and we will be seeing big leaps this year.
A NEW ERA FOR STREAMING
With 2023’s market disruption, including new streaming remuneration models from changes in the classification around how music is consumed, I am sure this will continue to be a hot topic in 2024. It’s an excellent thing for the business to be looking at, and as long as it’s not siloed as it was in 2023, I think it’s going to be a wild ride figuring out what the future of streaming looks like.
AI is advancing at an alarming rate and, as well as keeping up with those advancements, the music business must protect the humans who built it, wherever possible
Sammy Andrews
THE TRANSFORMATION OF X
Whether you love or hate Elon Musk, we’re going to see some mass transformation at X (formerly Twitter) in 2024. Whilst it remains unlicensed at the time of writing, the music industry would be foolish to underestimate the potential this app has for our business.
From licensing, subscription revenues and finance, to long- and short-form content plays, I have no doubt that Musk is on a mission to make X the ‘everything app’. Although it’s ill-judged not to have engaged with the music business in a more meaningful way already, Musk has the vision, drive and tools to revolutionise what we know and understand as social media. He would do well to extend an olive branch on occasion.
THE POSSIBILITIES OF WEB3
In 2023, we scratched the surface of what’s possible for the music business and Web3. If you think NFTs and blockchain are yesterday’s news, you are mistaken. We’re only at the very start of what is possible. Expect to see many more Web3 stories this year from across the globe.
SUPPORT FOR GRASSROOTS VENUES
Whilst our government in the UK continues to tighten the country’s economic belt in every way, we’re going to see a continued impact on our grassroots music sector. The music business must protect it at all costs. That burden is not just the live business’ to carry – the entire music business and everyone who benefits from it needs to step up and safeguard the grassroots ecosystem in the UK. At Deviate, we will be offering further support to the Music Venue Trust and its members. What will you do?
NAVIGATING THIS BRAVE NEW WORLD...
This year is going to be pivotal for the industry as it implements new technologies and starts to work out how many jobs can be replaced. I’m not talking just artistry. I’m talking lawyers, HR, accountants, supply chains, administration, mastering engineers, producers, technicians, drivers, even marketing teams. I don’t think 2024 will be the year we all lose our jobs to robots, but I do think it’s going to be the first year ever that it’s fully explored, to see how it can assist and refine activities on a mass scale, to save cash and boost revenue.
AI is advancing at an alarming rate and, as well as keeping up with those advancements, the music business must protect the humans who built it, wherever possible.
