MelodyVR Group PLC boosted as Napster user numbers swell
Napster – the original digital media disrupter and music-on-the-internet platform – saw a 126% rise in users during 2020.
MelodyVR Group PLC () shares advanced on Tuesday as music streaming platform Napster, acquired in August, was revealed to have more than doubled user numbers in 2020.
Total platform users increased 126% to 5.7mln and at the same time the measure of average monthly active users increased 15%.
Napster racked up a total of 10.5bn plays and 306.5mln listening hours in 2020, versus 10.8bn and 328.2mln in the year before.
“The continued adoption of music streaming is creating meaningful B2B growth opportunities for Napster’s platform-as-a-service business,” said Anthony Matchett, Melody chief executive.
He added: “Napster has seen increases in active users and in-app engagement during the last twelve months, and we believe this strong consumer appetite will continue into 2022 and that the launch of our new product will benefit from consumer’s increased appetite for digital entertainment.”
London headquartered, AIM-quoted MelodyVR – which has developed a platform for emersive and virtual reality entertainment – in August the AIM-quoted company acquired Napster parent Rhapsody International for US$26.3mln.
With the deal the company married Napster’s music library to its existing platform of VR music performances and live streamed events.
At that time, the company said its strategy is to scale the business with “a subscription model, implementing a monthly fee similar to other subscription-based companies operating in the entertainment sector” – which takes little decoding to read as “like Spotify or ”.
Today, Melody boss Anthony Matchett added: “Napster has seen increases in active users and in-app engagement during the last twelve months, and we believe this strong consumer appetite will continue into 2022 and that the launch of our new product will benefit from consumer’s increased appetite for digital entertainment.”
Tuesday’s statement also noted the renewal of key contracts with Napster’s business-to-business partners.
Speaker and equipment maker SONOS inked a new deal with Napster for an expansion of ad-supported SONOS Radio (a streaming service installed in the brand’s product) across 14 markets – including UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Australia, New Zealand.
Additionally, it also renewed agreements with Panasonic in relation to HomeX smart home music services, and, a digital media services agreement with Telefonica Germany for a Napster service for O2 subscribers and Talk.
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