Spotify launches video games music channel

The world’s largest streaming music app Spotify is angling for revenue from the current estimated 1.5 billion video game players around the world.

It has launched a new channel devoted to the best music hits and official soundtrack stand-outs from games.

At launch, Spotify Gaming had 120 soundtracks as Grand Theft Auto, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, No Man’s Sky, Dragon Age 2, Mass Effect, The Last Of Us, Mirror’s Edge, Assassin’s Creed, Bastion, Monument Valley and Uncharted 4.

There is additionally curated playlists by various gamers and media platforms as Day[9], Sneaky Zebra Polygon, Gamesbeat, Engadget and Mashable to put gamers “in the mood”. Spotify’s own playlists include Top Gaming Tracks, Indie Gaming, Electronic Gaming, Heavy Gaming, Mellowed Out For Gaming, Soundscapes for Gaming, RetroWaves and Epic Gaming among others.

One, Power Gaming”, is hip hop heavy from the likes of Eminem and Dr. Dre. “We’re covering everything from nostalgic 80’s mono tunes to the hottest new releases,” said the company in a blog.

“Whether you’re jumping down tubes as an Italian plumber, battling hordes of evil enemies or playing Barcelona at the Camp Nou, we got you covered with the perfect soundtrack.”

Video game producers spend an extraordinary amount of time and effort getting the music just right as the game weaves around stories and visuals. 65Daysofstatic, Faunts, David Korb, Disasterpeace, Toby Fox and Gustavo Santaolalla are just some of the cooler left-wing artists included, and worth discovering or investigating further.

It’s hard to know how many of Spotify’s current half a billion users and 100 million active users worldwide are already gamers.

Research into players found that the average gamer is a 31-year old male. 29% of them are aged under 18. Studies show that 44% of the world’s online population play online games. 46% of gamers are women. Of these, 47% are made up of the 15—24 age group, and 41% are over the age of 45. Of makes, 54% are in the 15—24 demo, and 37% are over 45.

The most common place people play games is on the couch (69%). 63% while commuting in a bus, train or car, 57% do it in bed, 55% waiting for an appointment, 41% in front of the TV and 34% when they’re on the toilet.

In April, Nazoo’s Global Games Market Report indicated that the global games market would hit US$9.6 billion in 2016, up 8.5% from last year. For the first time, mobile gaming will take a larger share than PC with $36.9 billion, up 21.3% globally. APAC accounts for 47% of global sales. China is the world’s biggest games market, accounting for a quarter of all revenues. The sum is set to jump to $10 billion this year, up 41% from the $7.1 billion in 2015. China will remain the biggest money-spinner for the time being, growing to $28.9 billion by 2019.

North America the second largest reaching $25.4 billion this year. Newzoo expects that with a CAGR of +6.6%, the sector will reach $118.6 billion by 2019, with mobile gaming contributing $52.5 billion.

Spotify Gaming is currently available in Browse across all platforms including Android, iOS, PlayStation and desktop.