Audio is expanding the internet
The future of delivering content is audio
Screens are shrinking. The once large desktop computer is being replaced with compact mobile devices. Yet, we want to remain informed and entertained online. Audio is the answer.
Although we have a surplus of information, innovative distribution channels are needed to deliver it. These are the trends that are disrupting how we consume content. These are the trends that are disrupting how we consume content via our ears.
We becoming increasingly connected to audio
We demand to stay informed and entertained while we’re on the go. Commuting to and from work is time consuming. Americans spend on average 50.8 minutes commuting daily. Our obsession with staying connected presents safety issues known as distracted driving, which Apple’s CarPlay plans to solve, despite controversy.
CarPlay features Siri voice control, as well as working with existing in car controls such as knobs, buttons, or touchscreen. With a focus on connectivity and safety, CarPlay features Maps, Phone, Messages, Music as well as apps like Spotify.
The internet of things is additional proof that information delivery and interaction via audio is not just a nice to have, but a must have. It extends to every home, car, business, building and system in the world, essentially anything can become and interface and audio will be vital in interaction.
Streaming is exploding
Streaming makes it possible to connect, consume and discover huge amounts of content.
Global digital music revenues have increased from $5.36bn in 2011 to $5.8bn in 2012. Scandinavia is leading the trend, with subscription streaming across Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark averaging 73.6% of overall digital music revenues in 2012.
Born in Scandinavia, Spotify understands that discovery is a huge key to holding listeners’ attention, having recently acquired The Echo Nest, which offer their API for building advanced, personalized music discovery experiences. The Echo Nest is behind Rdio, iHeart Radio, Vevo and XBox Music and claims that their customers reach over 100,000,000 music fans every month.
Shazam understand the power of discovery, expanding the previous offerings of audio identification to now offering television content identification, with easy access to previewing, buying, and sharing. The recent focus on discovery highlights consumer demand. We want relevant, meaningful and personalized content.
It’s not just about personalization, it’s about personality
While falling in love with Scarlett Johansson is pretty easy, Spike Jonze illustrates that we can fall in love with an operating system; an audio personality, in his film ‘Her’. Jonze Explores the relationship between technology and human nature, and offers an insight into the future. Samantha, the AI OS is a computer voice with a difference: personality.
In building an audio future, one thing is vital. Make it human.
Take Siri. The once perceived untrustworthy voice recognition technology has come a long way since being introduced as a feature of the iPhone 4S in 2011. Nuance, the voice recognition technology behind Siri, together with artificial intelligence layers, added by SRI under the project name CALO (Cognitive Agent that Learns and Organizes) to help make Siri work. However, it’s Siri’s personality, together with trust in her accuracy that make Siri a consumer product. Helping build a distinct, recognizable character was what made us fall in love with Siri.
While Siri is taking on the audio assistant space, the audio information and entertainment market offers exciting opportunities to create personalities to enhance content. Capsule.fm is creating intelligent, audio personalities. Miranda and Carl are the two english speaking personalities in the iOS app The Early Edition, waking you up with quirky and personalized audio, bridging news, weather, fun facts and entertainment together with music. Miranda told me that “I look gorgeous, Danielle. Stunningly gorgeous, and I am not being ironic.” It’s creating these emotional connections with technology and audio that create real consumer value.
Connectivity, streaming, personalization and personality are just four of the trends which are expanding the internet into the audio space, offering new content, as well as disrupting how we consume content.
