Listeners lose passion for music on streaming platforms, Israeli researchers say

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Israeli researchers uncovered a link between collecting music and listening enjoyment, offering insights into how streaming applications impact the way people perceive and experience music.

The study, led by Bar-Ilan University's Professor Ofer Bergman, and recently published in the peer-reviewed journal, Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, highlights the potential for a more satisfying listening experience through active music collection.

“Our studies underscore the vital role of music collection in shaping the subjective experience of music consumption. By actively engaging in the act of collecting within streaming platforms, users can elevate their enjoyment levels and possibly reignite their passion for music,” Bergman said.

For decades, music enthusiasts collected vinyl records, eight-track tapes, and audio cassettes or downloading songs onto MP3 players, forming personal collections reflecting their individual tastes.

But the shift to streaming music platforms, such as Spotify, Amazon Music Unlimited, and Apple Music has profoundly changed the way people collect music. Listeners now have unprecedented access to immense libraries of songs at no extra cost, along with algorithmic recommendations.

The streaming services are certainly convenient. But streaming's impact on listener's passions remained unexplored until now.

In the first study of the series, Bergman and his researchers conducted qualitative interviews, revealing a notable trend of reduced excitement among participants in the current musical landscape. The sheer abundance of music accessible at little to no expense was found to have diluted the subjective value of music, leaving some listeners with a sense of detachment.

In the second part of the research,