Why not all streaming services count towards the ARIA Charts

Image via ARIA

The news this morning that ARIA will be counting streaming figures in their charts and accreditations was a welcome one – but some people might be wondering why their streaming service of choice was left out.

The answer depends on which service you’re referring to – but either way, first keep in mind that the charts are designed to reflect not just what people are listening to, but what they’re paying for. 

Data is collected from Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer and Google Play for both the Albums and Singles charts, both overall and broken down by genre. They’re eligible to contribute data because they’re a) on-demand streaming services b) where the streams are paid for, either through subscription or supported by ad revenue.

The distinction between, say, an ad-supported (but "free") streaming account and a free and/or ad-supported internet radio channel might feel kind of irrelevant to the average listener – especially with the introduction of paid tiers for previously free services.

But ARIA has to draw the line somewhere to make sure the charts are a realistic reflection of how people are listening to music – and paying for it.

iHeart Radio and Pandora Radio are, well, radio stations – so if they’re your preferred platform, your "streams" there won’t count towards the ARIA charts.

YouTube "streams" don’t count at the moment, though they’re tracked on their own ARIA Audiovisual Chart, because it’s still a meaningful indicator of popularity and consumption.

As for TIDAL, Pandora Premium, and SoundCloud Go/Go+, it’s up to them to join the ranks of platforms that send their data to ARIA to be included in the chart figures.

TMN approached all three companies to find out if they’re planning on doing so; Pandora and SoundCloud reps have confirmed that they plan to submit figures to ARIA at some point once they’ve launched locally. 

"Any other on-demand streaming service where the streams are being paid for are welcome to contact ARIA and discuss contributing," an ARIA spokesperson told TMN.

"We’re happy to have a conversation with everyone – as long as the service meets our reporting requirements and as long as they are on-demand streaming services they should be good to contribute."

As the streaming wars continue throughout 2017 and beyond, this is something for each platform to consider. There are plenty of small and large differences between each service, but they all have one thing in common: they’re marketing themselves as a service for people who love music. 

ARIA’s decision shows how much the charts still matter in the age of streaming – and they matter on an emotional, cultural level, as well as being a key performance indicator for artists and labels. With streaming the single biggest factor in the industry’s still-fragile recovery, the companies trying to get a piece of that growth should be trying hard to appeal to audiences who care about making their listening habits count. 

This story has been updated since initial publication to include responses from streaming services, and to clarify that services with free tiers supported by ads are included in chart figures.