Music is an integral part of Indian culture. The Indian music industry can largely be divided into classical, folk, independent, religious and Bollywood, where Bollywood accounts for 80% of consumption. With more than 800 million Internet users, this market has matured and has the potential to attract the attention of many international companies. However, the game in India is regional and capturing rural audiences is what eventually changed the game for companies like TikTok (although it is currently banned) and YouTube. However, despite the number of users, the music industry ranks 15th in the world in terms of market share. Despite this, many casinos are interested in this music as they believe it is fun and will have a positive impact on casino guests, read about it here.Industry experts expect it to be in the top 10 by 2022 if it continues to grow (there may be some delay due to the pandemic).

The Covid-19 pandemic has brought with it radical (but possibly positive) changes in the Indian music scene. Due to the lack of live performances and the suspension of Bollywood film production, artists have started performing online and releasing independent music. The consumption of music streaming platforms jumped by almost 40% in 2020. A few months ago, Spotify showed solidarity with its indie artists when their indie campaign lit up Times Square in New York City. It was a huge success for represented independent indie artists, and well deserved. Thanks to DSP's support, global campaigns are no longer a far-fetched dream for artists.

The resurgence of indie pop, or what is now known as i-pop, has exacerbated the need for streamlined processes in all aspects of digitisation in the music industry. The DIY era has now arrived and artists have become entrepreneurs. They took the reins in terms of distributing and marketing their music, and many of them succeeded. Then came the realisation of how powerful publishing music could become, and an understanding of how to make money from copyrights, not just from recorded music. Publishing music is only now gaining recognition, and the Indian Performance Rights Society (IPRS) has been pushing the agenda more aggressively in the last few months. Their recent partnership with the T-Series is a big win for everyone.

There are several trends to look out for in 2022 that will increase the importance of publishing music and unlock the true potential of copyrights held by songwriters.

The rise of online performances/virtual concerts; many new platforms have already sprung up amid this pandemic, and will continue to make live streaming more convenient and accessible.
Increase in sync licensing with platforms such as Netflix, Amazon, Zee5, MX Player, SonyLiv, etc., quite aggressively releasing web series.
Collaboration and co-writing opportunities ;

I-Pop is a success, and more and more vocalists are looking to join this win and produce original music on their own.
If you are a songwriter, want to learn more about publishing music or are looking for ways to monetise your music, get in touch.