Digital music subscription service eMusic has partnered with 7digital to launch a new livestreaming platform, eMusicLive.
While there is no shortage of sites that have emerged under lockdown to help artists and labels livestream concerts, eMusic claims its new service will help “better monetise online performances by providing the direct commercial opportunities of live gigs for artists, such as bundling ticketing, music sales, merchandise and collectibles, all within in a single web-based platform”. Real-time VIP experiences, Q&A and virtual rewards will also be possible within its end-to-end, closed-loop system.
The platform will offer an integrated, artist-specific 7digital storefront to enable artists to sell music or promote their releases. Artists can embed streams from YouTube Live, Twitch, Instagram Live or host a performance directly on eMusicLive.
“At eMusic, we believe in technology that creates sustainability, removing inefficiencies or providing new income streams for artists,” said eMusic president, Tamir Koch, who has, with David Lazarus, a controlling stake in 7digital. “Even before Covid-19, artists performing online have been limited to platforms where they play for free and rely on multiple suppliers – this creates a fragmented approach to planning and promoting events as well as selling tickets, merch and music.
“We’ve built eMusicLive to bring all these commercial options together in one end-to-end solution,” he added. “For the first time, this means livestream can be a primary source of income for artists. Our unique partnership with 7digital will allow artists to generate income streams from music sales and interact seamlessly with fans from all corners of the world, which sets our new offering apart from anything else on the market today.”
“Social distancing measures in place around the world are creating an opportunity for new forms of live artist-to-fan engagement,” said Paul Langworthy, CEO of 7digital. “While there are plenty of platforms, none have captured the true essence of a proper show, which should include both the performance value for the fan and commercialisation value for artists. We are delighted to now be delivering this with eMusicLive, using our commercial to help recover lost income for artists. This is a new, emerging style of platform that we also see having tremendous value for venues as well as retailers and brands for whom music can play a key role in their engagement strategy or business model.”
The platform will launch with a series of 20 live performances from emerging artists over the coming days.
The move comes one day after MelodyVR purchased Napster to create a digital music/virtual reality livestream dual proposition.
* To read our recent livestreaming cover feature, click here. To subscribe to Music Week and never miss a vital music biz story, click here.
FOLLOW 
