We bring back our series “How to make money with your music” with a chapter dedicated to Deezer. A DSP that is far from enjoying the same fame as its direct competitors, and yet it hasn’t needed to generate a lot of noise to earn its own niche in the industry. Read on to find out how it did it.
What is Deezer?
Deezer is one of the streaming music services that exists today. Why should you be interested in being present on this platform? Because their figures are not negligible. Since its foundation in 2007, Deezer has gathered more than 16 million active users, 7 of which are premium. Its catalog includes 90 million songs, playlists, podcasts and radio channels, including exclusive content. And it’s available in 180 countries, including what are known in the industry as tough territories: Russia, Thailand, Singapore, etc.
What plans does Deezer offer?
As usual with any streaming service, Deezer offers several subscription options:
Deezer Free: the user has access to millions of songs, personalized recommendations and advanced functions such as the creation of playlists. Of course, since it is the free version, its use is subject to the presence of ads and certain limitations.
Deezer Premium: the user has enabled playback on demand, offline and on different devices. You also have all the features available, from high-fidelity sound to those made for you. And of course, it’s an ad-free experience.
Deezer Family: includes all the advantages of Deezer Premium, plus the possibility of sharing the account with up to 5 other people.
How can you upload music to Deezer?
As we have seen with other DSPs, Deezer does not allow artists to directly upload their music. They must do it through a distributor or from their record label if it has distribution.
How does monetization work on Deezer?
As we have already seen, Deezer has two sources of income. On the one hand, advertisers, and on the other, subscriptions. But how are these profits distributed among the artists?
In the beginning Deezer worked with the traditional payment method, the market share. The distribution of profits among the artists was based on their percentage of reproductions in relation to the total of the platform. This means that the most listened to artists always received higher income. A method that leaves independent projects and artists with a clear disadvantage.
Therefore, a couple of years ago Deezer implemented a new payment system focused on users. Known as UCPS (User-Centric Payment System), this method allows payments to be based on what each user actually hears. The money from each subscription goes, therefore, to those artists who have been listened to the most from the account during that month, regardless of whether they are the most listened to on the platform globally or not. With this model, Deezer wanted, on the one hand, to create a much fairer ecosystem for all artists, and on the other, to put an end to any possible fraud derived from bots.
Deezer for Creators
Formerly known as Deezer Backstage, it’s the feature we’ve already seen on every other DSP: claiming your verified artist profile. The process can take between 4 and 6 weeks, so we recommend that you don’t leave it until the last minute, especially if you have a new release on your hands. And if you are thinking of skipping this step, we have another recommendation for you: don’t do it.
Having an artist profile gives you a professional image, something that both the public and other agents in the industry appreciate. Having an updated biography, images, statuses and links to your social networks can only bring you benefits. And don’t forget that you also have access to data that collects your music performance and user activity. Essential information for developing effective launch and marketing strategies.
More Deezer benefits:
-You can transfer your entire library from any other music streaming services in just one click.
-It has the “search by lyrics” and SongCatcher functions, for those moments when you don’t know the title or the name of the artist.
-It has integrations with some social networks that will make it easier for you to share content.
-In addition to a team that curates recommendations, there is also Flow. This is a unique Deezer feature that combines the best of human selection and machine learning. This AI analyzes your listening history, likes and dislikes, and from there creates an endless playlist that is completely tailored to your tastes.
