Mark Mulligan

Mark Mulligan is a music analyst and the founder at MIDiA Research. He is a long-term tech analyst and a leading digital thinker with more than 20 years of experience, working with leading global music, entertainment, and tech companies. At MIDiA, Mark focuses on the streaming and creator economies, as well as music business trends and market metrics such as forecasts and market shares.

Craft versus character: the equation the music industry needs to fix

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Mark Mulligan

18 Feb 2025

I recently wrote about the unflattening of music :how creativity, craft, and fandom can – if done right – counter the growing commodification of music. Not surprisingly, I focused on the music side of the equation, but in doing so I missed the other big flattening challenge music faces.

min read

Why Spotify only hit profitability now (but will do so again)

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Mark Mulligan

13 Feb 2025

Business Strategy

Spotify finally registered its first profitable year in 2024. It has hit net profit in individual quarters before – most recently in Q3 2023 – but this is the first year it was profitable throughout the year.

min read

AI is reshaping the music creator economy, and that change will reshape the music business

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Mark Mulligan

3 Feb 2025

Business Strategy

Creator economy

MIDiA is pleased to announce the release of not one but two new music creator economy reports. These are our latest " State of the music creator economy "and " Music creator tools forecasts "reports. These annual deliverables have quickly become industry benchmarks, and if you operate in the music c...

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The unflattening of music

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Mark Mulligan

30 Jan 2025

Cultural trends

[This post builds on two other recent MIDiA posts: Background music and What got you here ] At the half way point of the decade it is a good time to reflect on how the business of music is reshaping the culture of music – and where this is heading.

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MIDiA Research 2025–2031 music creator tools forecasts
AI comes to town

Cover image for MIDiA Research 2025–2031 music creator tools forecasts

Mark Mulligan

January 2025

subscribers

AI

Business Strategy

This music creator tools forecasts report acts as a companion piece to MIDiA’s report “State of music creator economy: AI’s growing reach ” . This report provides analysis, market sizing, and forecasts for users and revenues for music creator tools revenues across the following categories: Software and services DAWs Music software (plug-ins...

State of the music creator economy
AI’s growing reach

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Mark Mulligan and Tatiana Cirisano

January 2025

Innovation

Creators

revenue

Still recovering from post-pandemic aftershocks, the music creator economy now faces unprecedented disruption from generative AI. More people are creating than ever before (both as creators and consumers) and sounds, services, and software revenue is growing well (the latter boosted by generative AI).

What got you here won’t get you there: how Spotify built a new business

Cover image for What got you here won’t get you there: how Spotify built a new business

Mark Mulligan

17 Jan 2025

Business Strategy

Since its inception, Spotify has been, and continues to be, the streaming music market’s lightning rod. This is due to its continued ability to maintain leading market share and the fact it is the only leading global DSP that is independent and therefore has to focus place more focus on commercial...

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Anti-algorithm, anti-perfection - the rise of a music counter-culture

Mark Mulligan

20 Dec 2024

Today’s music landscape is one defined by abundance and immediacy. In today’s chronically-online world, everything is over-ground, immediately. Scenes have to work really hard to be underground and even then, some eagle-eyed A+R or marketing person is going to see the buzz and try to bottle its ...

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Q3 2024 music metrics
Maturation effect

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Mark Mulligan

December 2024

Business Strategy

This report presents MIDiA consumer data for key music consumer behaviours and company financials for Q3 2024.Consumer data covered includes, streaming app usage, music behaviour and streaming activities. Company financials covers record labels, music publishers, DSPs, and live music companies.

MIDiA's 2025 predictions webinar slides
It's social's stage now

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Mark Mulligan, Karol Severin, Hanna Kahlert, Tatiana Cirisano, Ben Woods, Rutger Rosenborg, Rhys Elliott and Olivia Jones

December 2024

Spotify

YouTube

Twitch

MIDiA's expert analysts dive into our 2025 predictions for the music, social, video, audio, and games industries – and explain why we believe "it's social's stage now".

MIDiA’s 2025 predictions
It’s social’s stage now

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Mark Mulligan, Karol Severin, Hanna Kahlert, Tatiana Cirisano, Ben Woods, Rutger Rosenborg, Rhys Elliott and Olivia Jones

December 2024

Apple

Spotify

YouTube

The creator economy reshaped entertainment in the first half of the 2020s and social wasthe big winner, now positioned at the centre of the entertainment economy. In 2025 wewill see the second-order effects begin to play out, set against the backdrop of attentionsaturation, content commodification, and increased focus on profit.

It’s social’s stage now: MIDiA’s 2025 predictions webinar

Cover image for It’s social’s stage now: MIDiA’s 2025 predictions webinar

Mark Mulligan

28 Nov 2024

2025 predictions

One of my favourite parts of the MIDiA year is creating the MIDiA predictions report and webinar. It is always a true team effort, with our team of analysts spending weeks brainstorming ideas, proposing predictions, stress testing those to within an inch of their lives, and then writing the report.

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Hold or twist? The music industry’s innovation dilemma

Cover image for Hold or twist? The music industry’s innovation dilemma

Mark Mulligan

20 Nov 2024

streaming growth

As Clayton Christensen identified in The Innovator’s Dilemma, there are two types of innovation: sustaining innovation and disruptive innovation. Sustaining innovation is what companies do to enhance existing business models, while disruptive innovation is typically driven by new entrants – insu...

min read

State of the independent music economy
Fragmentation and consolidation

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Mark Mulligan and Tatiana Cirisano

October 2024

Business Strategy

independent label market shares

Independent label market shares by region

This report presents the results of MIDiA’s annual independent label and distributor survey, as well as the most comprehensive market sizing of the non-major label sector ever conducted. Built on revenue data for 5,500 companies, we present the definitive view of the independent music economy, with market sizing, regional trends, the companies to...

State of the independent music economy: Fragmentation AND consolidation

Mark Mulligan

31 Oct 2024

label market shares

Independent labels

MIDiA is excited to announce our latest report “ State of the independent music economy: Fragmentation AND consolidation”. It represents the most extensive piece of research we have ever done. Through a combination of our annual Independent Label and Distributor Survey and an exhaustive (and ex...

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Beyond the obvious: Building future-focused strategy

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Mark Mulligan

11 Oct 2024

Business Strategy

Business strategy has long been demarcated across sustaining and disruptive innovation. In the digital realm, the latter has had the upper hand, but now, as digital enters a slower growth phase, sustaining innovation is back in favour.

min read

Music creator economy: recalibration

Cover image for Music creator economy: recalibration

Mark Mulligan

26 Sep 2024

Creator economy

Music creator tools

The music creator economy has been long in the making but was thrust into the wider music industry’s limelight with the Covid lockdowns triggering a surge in new creators. As with any bubble, many creator tools companies saw their ensuing surge flatten post-lockdown.

min read

Music creator survey
Recalibration

Cover image for Music creator survey

Mark Mulligan and Tatiana Cirisano

September 2024

Audience Insight

The music creator economy has been slowly developing but was thrust into the spotlight by a surge of new creators during the Covid lockdowns. As with any bubble, it eventually burst; many creator tools companies saw the ensuing surge flatten post-lockdown.

Q2 2024 music metrics
Bifurcation is here

Cover image for Q2 2024 music metrics

Mark Mulligan and Tatiana Cirisano

September 2024

Business Strategy

This report presents MIDiA consumer data for key music consumer behaviours and company financials for Q2 2024. Consumer data covered includes, streaming app usage, music behaviour, and streaming activities. Company financials covers record labels, music publishers, DSPs, and live music companies.

Q2 2024 music market metrics: bifurcation is here

Cover image for Q2 2024 music market metrics: bifurcation is here

Mark Mulligan

19 Sep 2024

Music streaming

There are so many music industry metrics and financial results flying around these days that it can be difficult to keep up with them all. Don’t worry, we’ve got you. MIDiA has just published the first edition of a brand-new report series: quarterly music metrics.

min read

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