The Relationship Between Music and Games

By Adam Rumanek

It’s never been easier for new gaming creators to license music, but generating revenue has also never been more complicated. Thinking long term, musicians can generate revenue and audience reach on these deals if the games get popular.

Streaming platforms like YouTube or sharing music with friends are good avenues for music discovery, but gaming is an often overlooked option. From Guitar Hero to Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series, in-game music has been and will continue to be a revenue source for the music industry.

Gamers are not only chatting while playing but also listening to music in the background alongside the in-game music the developers chose. Both the music and gaming industries understand this position and use this channel to affect music habits.

To find new audiences, musicians need to make inroads with gaming companies. The music industry has fought to control music distribution for decades, but streaming platforms like YouTube have enabled musicians to control their own distribution channels. Musicians can instead go directly to gaming companies and YouTubers who might need alternate music to reach new audiences.

Games as a distribution method are more important than ever for musicians. As the gaming community continues to expand, the opportunities do, as well: live gaming competitions, movie adaptations and even “Let’s Play” style YouTube videos offer opportunities for a musician to reach a new audience. To capitalize on this reach and expand the music industry’s distribution channels, record labels should look beyond the initial reach of the game and see the wide-angle viewership of the audience. The gaming go-to-market strategy has a lot to do with music budgets. Some developers can spend an enormous amount of money on the music license, knowing a big artist can attract a user base to play the game that may not have originally.

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As revenue grows through in-game purchases, integrations in gameplay and more, the licensing instruments used for music must evolve. The emergence of new experiences and technologies will likely force the industry to change. Indie game developers have now taken to AI-generated music as a way of retaining the rights to their music, which is obviously another way to lower their costs and possibly create a much larger revenue stream beyond the game. Many publishers know music associated with a game can have long-term value.

The crossover potential is crystal clear for musicians entering the gaming community. Today, they require matchmaking too as there are as many game developers as musicians. For game studios, accessing music libraries has never been easier. Libraries have been built with the purpose of helping developers choose from hundreds of thousands of tracks, and access has never been easier.

The business is complicated but has simplified in some areas as technology has made access to music easier via potential games and development studios. Both products are art but getting a game into production, development, and publication is a very long, winding journey. All musicians and game studios should protect their intellectual property (IP) prior to making any partnerships. If the game attracts a large audience, the need is even greater.

Musicians, TV and film creators should all register their content for content protection. While registering your content for content protection on platforms like YouTube does not protect you from a bad business partner, it does protect your IP from misuse on YouTube.