SEPTEMBER | FEATURE
Laura Marling at Union Chapel / Photography: Joel Ryan
what profits you want to try and make,”
says Message.
The majority of Driift’s shows so far
have been streamed but Biffy Clyro
and Nick Cave’s were pre-recorded. For
Cave the option of pre-recording the
performance and being able to make
the end result more “film like” was the
deciding factor.
Laura Marling at Union Chapel / Photography: Joel Ryan
Message says there has been no
clear difference in the level of demand
for the shows, whether pre-recorded
or streamed live: “There seems to be a
uniformity of excitement among fans
who want to be able to see their favourite
artists at this time. Clearly an important
part of the equation is scarcity, this is the
chance for fans to see artists perform at a
time when there are no real live shows.”
In an effort to generate more revenue
and expand the options for viewers
Driift is working on added functionality
including album and merchandise
bundles, as well as enabling video chat
rooms for fans during performances.
Says Message, “There is a whole bunch
of creatives we want to get out of the gate
and introduce the functionality, there is
demand coming from all around – from
fans and artists. What is made available
depends on each individual project and
whether it is appropriate or not, but we
have shows coming up that will have
extra functionality such as virtual meet
and greets, and VIP packages.
“We are at the forefront of this type of
show and there are lots of different ideas
we are working on.”
While the artist manager is hugely
enthusiastic about the streamed-show
format, and is convinced it has legs, he
is less certain that streamed live shows
performed in front of an audience would
work so well for the online participants.
He says, “There is a whole industry at
the moment on a coil waiting to leap back
into traditional live shows but we believe
there is a big role to play with these kind
of creatives that can sit alongside live
shows and create an alternative.
“I am not so keen on hybrids where
there is a live and PPV audience because
one thing that is nice about having no
audience in the venue with this type of
product is the democratisation of the
audience, everyone is in the same boat,
wherever you are in the world you are
watching a production – you are not a
second-class citizen compared to the
people in the venue itself.
“That is something we feel might
come out of it but it is a Wild West at the
moment, who knows how this will shape
up when real shows come back.”
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