On-demand services becoming the in thing

Consumers globally prefer on-demand services for their entertainment purposes with 47 per cent listening to music via YouTube. These platforms offer easy access to music and television programmes. Kenyan companies have joined the innovative bandwagon too, investing in them in order to reach consumers better.

According to a 2018 global consumer report released last week by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), 86 per cent of consumers listen to music through on-demand streaming services with YouTube being the most preferred platform.

“Of the population demographic sampled, 52 per cent said they listen to music on video streaming platform; 47 per cent on YouTube and five per cent on other platforms; 28 per cent on paid audio streaming and 20 per cent on free audio streaming platforms,” reported IFPI.

Thanks to this trend, the global revenues for paid downloads have declined from 3.2 billion to 2.8 billion while on-demand streaming music revenues have increased to reach 6.6 billion from 4.7 billion as at 2017.

The main reason identified for not using a paid audio application by 35 per cent of consumers that use YouTube is that all the music content that they would like to listen to is readily available on the video streaming platform.

“The music industry has transformed itself into a predominantly digital, growing industry. To achieve this, record companies have worked tirelessly to adapt, innovate and invest, to drive a new digital age for music,” reported IFPI.

Streaming music and video content on demand has changed the landscape of how content is consumed. In Kenya, YouTube records about 8 million active users monthly according to Nendo, a Kenyan digital strategy, research and training agency.

This has eliminated the need to wait for shows to air on a specific television channel for consumers to watch their favourite programmes. Consumers can now listen to music and watch the latest movies as soon as they are released and at their convenience. This is in part due to the widespread availability of high-speed internet.

In addition, accessing on-demand content is cost-friendly as it simply requires internet access, unlike traditional providers where you will need to subscribe to a premium monthly subscription package.

Moreover, video and music on demand service providers offer the consumer the luxury of choosing their preferred content as the platform offers access to a diverse array of different types of videos and music.

On-demand platforms also allow consumers to use multiple streaming devices like phones and laptops as opposed to the traditional paid services which limit you to use one watching device, a television.

For instance, Viusasa, a Kenyan video on demand (VOD) platform that offers TV shows, sports, music and TV news to its users on the go has gained popularity since its launch one year ago. The app has recorded over one million downloads, with Google ranking it as the third most popular Android Google Store app in Kenya.

From it, viewers are able to live-stream a show of their choice on any device at a time that suits them. Moreover, the app offers cost-friendly subscription charges, its prices range between Sh20 and Sh30 for daily usage and between Sh300 and Sh450 for monthly subscriptions.

This allows users to watch shows such as Nigerian movies and catch up with the latest music videos from across the continent.

This is in contrast to cable-tv, DStv whose prices range from Sh950 to Sh7,900 per month to access the same Nigerian shows that are aired on its Africa Magic channel.

However, this latest trend of consumers demanding quick access to music and popular television shows has attracted stream-ripping also known as piracy.

IFPI reports that it is the most-used form of copyright infringement with 32 per cent of all consumers downloading music through piracy so that they can listen to it offline and avoid constantly paying for a premium subscription.

- African Laughter