JON MITCHELL - SALES DIRECTOR, SPOTIFY
- Why should advertisers associate with music streaming?
Music fans have been given access to more music than they could ever have previously imagined - and all for free. It's a hugely personal, yet accessible, environment in which advertisers can reach a receptive audience and enjoy a much more intimate conversation.
- How are they able to do this through your service?
Spotify has a wide range of display and audio (and soon video) ads that are served when people are hooked into the service. We know who every user is by age, gender and location (postcode, not IP address) when they're using the service. This makes Spotify's targeting exceptionally strong. We also only serve display ads when people are actually interacting with the player and audio ads can't be missed as we know people are listening to music and, just as crucially, their music.
- Both Last.fm and Spotify are attracting significant audiences, but how successful are you in turning this into revenue?
We've made huge progress, having only launched near the end of last year, with new brands such as Nokia, TalkTalk, PlayStation, BMW Mini, Vodafone and Sony Pictures benefiting from our strong targeting and high-quality environment. We're also measured in the same way as online so the audio ads are able to stand alongside online metrics for the first time while offering a powerful channel for branding too.
- Why is the music industry willing to support your service?
So many music services have tried to come up with solid business models and failed, so it was only natural that initially the labels were sceptical. However, when they saw the technology they were sold. Labels also need to look at alternative ways to combat piracy. Additionally, we can be used as a tool for breaking new artists.
- How well do you think the music business has tackled the broader problem of illegal downloading?
Right now it's virtually impossible to effectively police the internet and The Pirate Bay case has shown how laborious and tricky this can be. The way we see it, music fans don't actually want to be illegal, but they do want to have everything instantly at their fingertips, which is what The Pirate Bay facilitated. The best way to compete with that is to come up with a better, legal product.
- How can ad-funded music services survive the downturn?
By offering great branding opportunities, superb targeting to reduce wastage, innovation on formats that don't turn the user off and very strong return on investment. Not solely monetising through ads is important too.
- What innovations to your service can we expect to see in the near future?
We're looking at portable solutions but also focusing on ways to get users even closer to their favourite acts. We should see lots of very cool innovations made by some of the smartest developers on the web. The exciting thing is we don't know exactly what yet.
- How would you describe your own music taste?
Not cutting-edge enough to be allowed on the office collaborative playlist! So I'll just plump for "eclectic".
MILES LEWIS - SENIOR VICE-PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL SALES, LAST.FM
- Why should advertisers associate with music streaming?
Music is personal and stirs emotions. Accessing this state of mind is one of the most powerful opportunities in media. It is why advertisers spend time and money finding "that" track for their campaign and why brands are becoming artist "labels".
- How are they able to do this through your service?
We offer a multi-tiered way of reaching our users. This includes audiovisual engagement with users, smart immersive display ad formats and live events. We offer the desirable Last.fm audience in home, at work and out of home (our iPhone and Android apps are streaming huge amounts of music daily).
- Both Last.fm and Spotify are attracting significant audiences, but how successful are you in turning this into revenue?
So far, so good. Last.fm has more than 30 million users but it's the nature of the audience, which is young, savvy and without the financial burden of mortgages and family, that attracts agencies, as well as the fact that we offer the best high-impact media package in the online music space. Users want clever and engaging ads and to meet this we offer flexible solutions. Our skins, two supersize Internet Advertising Bureau units and pre-rolls are all perfectly integrated into the visual listening experience.
- Why is the music industry willing to support your service?
One of Last.fm's points of difference is music discovery. You launch the site, type an artist in and you receive a stream of music that is varied, some familiar and some unexpected. We have countless e-mails from our users who have purchased more music because of Last.fm.
- How well do you think the music business has tackled the broader problem of illegal downloading?
On the one hand, the labels' recent change of attitude has been marked and it's great to see them more supportive of services such as Last.fm. On the other, a generation of music consumers is growing up with "free" in their heads (and not just for music) so moving them to pay will be tough.
- How can ad-funded music services survive the downturn?
Last.fm has an enviable young, savvy and tribal audience. The world's brands know that for someone to choose their brand over another, there have to be tangible reasons and it can't just be price, especially at a time of potential deflation. If the messaging is right, if the targeting is right, Last.fm offers a powerful and effective route to these consumers.
- What innovations to your service can we expect to see in the near future?
Personalised Visual Music, a feature-rich listening experience including our unique next generation Last.fm Personalised Visual Music player. Accompanying the music will be a continuous stream of photos of the artist being played, creating a significantly superior multi-sensory experience. The Last.fm community will also be able to create multi-genre stations and multi-artist streams.
- How would you describe your own music taste?
Ever asked yourself why Bryan Adams is not the number one artist on Last.fm?