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Amazon introduces ‘Song ID’ to help smart speaker owners learn about music

Amazon, Amazon Echo, Smart Speakers, Song Id,

Don’t know the name of the song you want to hear? Amazon’s new Song ID feature has the answer.

The smart speaker revolution is upon us. Last month, a new study from Adobe Analytics found that more than 1/3 of American consumers, 36% to be exact, own one or more smart speakers. That figure is expected to grow substantially in the coming months, and even further in the years that follow.

The upside to the popularity of smart speakers is that it leads consumers to listen to more music more often. A study by AudienceNet at the end of 2018 found that homes with smart speakers listen to 50% more music than homes without and that those same homes are 49% more likely to listen to music for more extended periods. They also listen to more playlists.

But there’s a problem: Many consumers don’t know the title of the songs they hear on the radio, and even more don’t know the artists who sing them.

When someone wants to hear a song on their smart speaker, they must ask for it. For Amazon devices, users often say, “Alexa, please play __________.” The device then searches for that song or artist and plays the track it believes the user wants to hear. It’s a great system that is far quicker than pulling a record from a shelf and placing it on a turntable or popping a CD into a boombox, but it only works if the consumer knows exactly what they want to hear.

Let’s say someone wanted to hear “Let It Go,” the popular song from the Disney film Frozen, but they couldn’t remember the name of the movie. That person could ask Alexa to play “Let It Go,” but there are at least 42 songs on Amazon Music and Spotify with that title. Which one would it choose? If it chose another version than the desired one, what could the consumer do?

To aide in educating consumers about the music they love, Amazon has introduced ‘Song ID.’ When enabled, Alexa will announce the title and the artist name before playing each song while you’re listening to a radio station, playlist or new release on Amazon Music over your smart speaker.

The optional feature for Echo devices can be enabled or disabled by voice at any time by asking Alexa to “turn on Song ID” or “turn off Song ID.”

In addition to making consumers aware of what they’re listening to, Amazon also hopes ‘Song ID’ makes users more comfortable talking to Alexa. The software does not have much a personality itself, but users who trust the device are more likely to use it for other things, such as ordering products from the Amazon store.

The new feature is live today across Amazon Music in the U.S. and works on Echo devices, says Amazon.

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36% of Americans now own smart speakers. Here’s what that means for musicians.

More than 1/3 of American consumers have smart speakers in their homes. The future of audio consumption is here, but artists may face unforeseen problems in the coming years.

As Bob Dylan famously sang, “the times they are a .” Just four months after it reports that 14% of American homes had smart speakers in them, a new study from Adobe Analytics has found that more than 1/3 of American consumers, 36% to be exact, own one or more smart speakers. That’s massive growth in a small amount of time, and the market will likely expand further in the months ahead.

The 2019 Adobe Analytics Voice Report surveyed more than 1,000 U.S. consumers over the age of 18 from January 28-31 of this year. It found smart speaker ownership leaned more heavily towards males, with 43 percent of men claiming to own the devices compared to just 29 percent of women.

Overall, the age group ranging 35-54 dominated ownership, with 47 percent claiming to have a device. The 18-34 group followed with 40 percent, then the 55-64 group with 37 percent and the 65-and-over group claiming 25 percent ownership.

How the gift-giving holiday season impacted ownership was not studied, but it likely played a factor in the growth seen across all demographics.

Other findings in the study include more people reporting that they are using their smart speakers for playing music (74 percent, as compared to 70 percent in August 2018) — the most popular use of smart speakers overall. It’s also most likely that people keep their devices in their living rooms (64%), but bedrooms (46%) and kitchens (32%) are popular locations as well.

All this information is a good thing for artists and labels alike. A study by AudienceNet at the end of 2018 found that homes with smart speakers listen to 50% more music than homes without and that those same homes are 49% more likely to listen to music for more extended periods. They also listen to more playlists.

But there is something else to consider here, and that is how artists will promote themselves as smart speakers continue to become commonplace in homes around the world. Throughout the history of recorded music, an artist’s image and branding has been the primary way to build familiarity with consumers. However, smart speakers strip away the importance of image and place an emphasis on names, which will inevitably force artists to choose names that are original and easy to recall. Will it also force bands with highly stylized names to change? Will H09909 (pronounced ‘horror’) or Fever333 have to rethink their promotional strategy? Only time will tell.

There’s also a question about how the algorithms smart speakers use will sort artists with similar names. If someone asks Alexa to play music by The Red Trees and there are two or more artists with that name, which artist gets chosen and why?

The same can be said for songs. There are at least 42 songs titled “Let It Go” available on Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon music right now. If I ask to hear that song without knowing the artist associated, which version gets played and why? Will smart speakers learn our tastes and make a guess based on past behavior? Will it choose the most popular version?

There are a lot of questions to be answered, but the fact remains that smart speakers are good for music overall. Smart speakers encourage increased listening, and that means more streaming royalties for artists, as well as more chances for new artists to be discovered.

We are planning to discuss marketing tips for voice-activated tech in the near future. Follow Haulix on Facebook and Twitter for more information.

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News

Smart Speakers are making a serious impact on music consumption in the U.S.

Smart speakers have lead to a surge in music consumption. What does this mean for the industry, and where do we go from here?

Not so long ago, radio was the primary form of home entertainment. Families would gather around their stereos, which were as large as many televisions are today, and they would listen intently to songs and stories being shared over the airwaves. You probably don’t remember this time, but if you’re lucky enough to have grandparents they probably have a story or two to share. It looked something like this:

Those of us born in the last fifty years have most likely never spent an evening gathered around our stereos with those we love the most. At best, we have shared some memory making experiences with those closest to us while singing along to car stereos on road trips or late night drives under moonlit skies, but even those moments are becoming something of an ‘old time’ hobby. Radio is dying, and car stereos are mostly used as a mean to connect our smartphones with our stereo systems to play our favorite songs or playlists.

Home listening, however, has long been in a state of flux. While TV and later streaming gained popularity, the use of radio or stereos of any kind in the home began to wane. That is until the recent rise of smart speakers began to take the nation by storm.

A recent survey looking to understand the listening habits of people over the age of 16 by AudienceNet, a company out of the UK, found the increasing popularity of smart speakers by companies like Sonos and Google correlates to a rise in overall music consumption. Despite only 14% of the U.S. population owning smart speakers, those that do listen to 50% more music and 49% longer than before. They also check out more playlists as well.

With the holiday season right around the corner, the number of American homes with smart speakers in them is likely to grow in leaps and bounds. Early Black Friday ads from Best Buy and other retailers place emphasis on the devices, and a number of marketing efforts with buzzworthy groups such as Greta Van Fleet have no doubt made more curious about the technology than at the same point a year ago.

Further encouraging adoption is Spotify, who recently launched a promotion that offers a FREE Google Home speaker to anyone with a Family subscription plan on the streaming service. The offer applies to new and existing subscription holders and runs through the end of December, meaning its likely to help thousands, even millions, with their gift-giving efforts.

Families may no longer gather around the stereo at the end of the day, but with smart speakers becoming commonplace they are engaging with music (and other services provided by the devices) like never before. We expect a wave of tips and tricks to encourage specific artist engagement to hit the music blogosphere, including this site, in the near future as a result. Stay tuned.

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