Product Strategy blog by MIDiA Research

Blog: Product Strategy

Read our latest daily deep dives, hot takes, and exciting updates about the digital entertainment world. Check out the latest from your favourite analyst, or search by coverage - games, video, music, audio, social, or critical developments.

Is Spotify’s new monetisation model unlocking the power of video in podcasting?

Cover image for Is Spotify’s new monetisation model unlocking the power of video in podcasting?

Rutger Rosenborg

21 Nov 2024

In October, MIDiA positioned Spotify’s video push as both a strategic move against YouTube and also as an evolution in the platform from music-first to audio-first to format agnostic. As we noted, the...

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A fifth of gamers love couch co-op, so where are all the games?

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Rhys Elliott

15 Nov 2024

Couch co-op gaming, when two or more players in the same room play together co-operatively, already has some proven success stories: It Takes Two , a co-op-only platformer from EA studio Hazelight, has...

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How creator hardware companies can adapt to AI’s new creative lane

Cover image for How creator hardware companies can adapt to AI’s new creative lane

Ben Woods

7 Nov 2024

Product Strategy

creator hardware

Companies building creator hardware are used to disruption. The last seismic shift came in the shape of the smartphone. Mass market point-and-shoot cameras were met with an existential crisis when lenses...

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The Activision acquisition pushed Xbox to gaming growth in Q3 as Black Ops 6 makes a big splash

Cover image for The Activision acquisition pushed Xbox to gaming growth in Q3 as Black Ops 6 makes a big splash

Rhys Elliott

1 Nov 2024

Product Strategy

Microsoft’s Q3 2024 results (fiscal Q1 2025) continue to reflect Xbox’s shifting strategy: Xbox’s gaming revenue grew 43% year-on-year , but essentially all of this growth came from the Activision...

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Two future paths for the vinyl revival

Cover image for Two future paths for the vinyl revival

Tatiana Cirisano

31 Oct 2024

monetising fandom

The vinyl resurgence is among the top music industry narratives of the past few years, especially given the recent focus on monetising fandom. The elephant in the room is the question of how long this...

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AI and ad exchanges are helping podcast advertising grow — but who benefits most?

Cover image for AI and ad exchanges are helping podcast advertising grow — but who benefits most?

Rutger Rosenborg

30 Oct 2024

Podcast advertising has existed for more than a decade, but it is only just beginning to evolve. For much of its existence, it has resembled radio advertising more than other digital ad formats. A lack...

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Want to monetise generative AI tools effectively? Then make them safe for creators

Cover image for Want to monetise generative AI tools effectively? Then make them safe for creators

Ben Woods

17 Oct 2024

Creator Economy

Adobe wrapped its creativity conference on Wednesday after a slew of product announcements for creators. Much like last year’s MAX event, artificial intelligence was front and centre. Many of the demos...

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The next era of entertainment: AI and social are lowering barriers, but new ones must emerge

Cover image for The next era of entertainment: AI and social are lowering barriers, but new ones must emerge

Hanna Kahlert

15 Oct 2024

There is an inherent tension between tech-enabled accessibility to creation (good), and the ability for that entertainment to become successful (challenging). Music and other entertainment industries typically...

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Beyond video podcasts: Spotify’s investment in video creators reveals its format agnosticism

Cover image for Beyond video podcasts: Spotify’s investment in video creators reveals its format agnosticism

Rutger Rosenborg

9 Oct 2024

video streaming

As more sustainable acquisitions come to podcasting, according to Podnews , Spotify is again looking to spend up to seven figures on creator investments. This time, video is the primary focus. Per Bloomberg...

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Unpacking AI’s threat to video creator hardware

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Ben Woods

4 Oct 2024

Creator Economy

video creator tools

“AI video generators are just another tool in the box”: this statement has been circulating in recent months as AI adoption gathers pace. It is mostly used to soothe concerns regarding AI disruption...

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Most gamers prefer single-player games

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Rhys Elliott

3 Oct 2024

It’s no secret that the bulk of AAA games market revenues come from in-game purchases , mostlyfrom live-service games. It’s also impossible to ignore that the live-service market is fiercely competitive....

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Welcome to the post-feature world

Cover image for Welcome to the post-feature world

Tatiana Cirisano

26 Sep 2024

artist services

music distribution

During the first two decades of the 21st century, companies in most industries competed on features and user interface. Snapchat was once the only social app with Stories, and the iPhone used to sit alongside...

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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...

min read

TikTok may be shutting down its music service, but it will still compete with streaming

Cover image for TikTok may be shutting down its music service, but it will still compete with streaming

Hanna Kahlert

24 Sep 2024

TikTok has announced that it plans to shut down its music streaming service, TikTok Music, at the end of November (per Bloomberg ). The company has cautioned users that they should migrate all their playlists...

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Sony's $700 PS5 Pro is for superfans – it won’t really grow PlayStation’s playerbase

Cover image for Sony's $700 PS5 Pro is for superfans – it won’t really grow PlayStation’s playerbase

Rhys Elliott

10 Sep 2024

Sony just announced its worst-kept secret, the PS5 Pro. It's launching for $700 in November 2024, four years after the debut of the original PS5. Compared to the original, PS5 Pro will offer better visuals...

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The battle has begun to own the creator through all-encompassing ecosystems

Cover image for The battle has begun to own the creator through all-encompassing ecosystems

Ben Woods

4 Sep 2024

Creator Economy

There has always been tension between the goals of creators, social platforms, and creator tools companies. As the creator economy has evolved, a push and pull has ensued between what creators’ feel...

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Apple’s podcast accessibility play — too little, too late?

Cover image for Apple’s podcast accessibility play — too little, too late?

Rutger Rosenborg

28 Aug 2024

On Aug. 22, Bloomberg ’s Ashley Carman described how Apple lost its lead in podcasts , pointing to the platform’s lack of video adoption as the likely culprit. YouTube, meanwhile, has climbed to the...

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How CapCut is challenging Adobe Premiere Pro’s dominance of the video editing market

Cover image for How CapCut is challenging Adobe Premiere Pro’s dominance of the video editing market

Ben Woods

15 Aug 2024

Adobe Premiere Pro

Social platforms have brought a significant number of new creators into the market. With this has come a whole host of creator tools companies looking to capitalise on the opportunity. While their features...

min read

Podcast unbundling: How Amazon Music’s Topics may accelerate the trend

Cover image for Podcast unbundling: How Amazon Music’s Topics may accelerate the trend

Rutger Rosenborg

14 Aug 2024

Every podcast platform has a search function. Type “conspiracy” into most and you will probably see a list of podcast titles with the word conspiracy in it, but there may be hundreds of episodes related...

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The video creator economy’s challenge: not all creators want to pay for editing tools

Cover image for The video creator economy’s challenge: not all creators want to pay for editing tools

Ben Woods

25 Jul 2024

video creator tools

Adobe Premiere Pro

Video creation has never been more accessible. More and more entertainment consumers are shifting from passive to lean-through consumption by creating their own content. However, those creators have different...

min read

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