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SoundSpot Connecting Artists With Fans

Adi, Ana, Cecilia, Elise, Emma, Katherine

October 23rd, 2025

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TEAM

Ana N.

CS Graphics, HCI

Emma S.

Product/User Research

Adi B.

Computer Science (AI and HCI)

Katherine L.

User Research/Design

Elise B.

Symbolic Systems and MS&E

Cecilia W.

Engineering/Design

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Introduction

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Social music streaming platform combining listening + connection
Users co-create playlists, join live artist events, and chat in real-time
Built for people who believe music is better shared

Music + Community = SoundSpot

What is SoundSpot?

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Streaming is saturated; community is the next frontier
Fans crave intimacy, not just access -> parasocial culture is booming
SoundSpot bridges the gap between artists and superfans through authentic digital experiences

Fans of today don’t just stream – they belong.

Why It Matters

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600 MAUs, but growth flat and runway short (8 months)
Competing with Spotify or Apple on catalog size is unwinnable
Must own a defensible niche (moat)

Emotional connection between artists and their most loyal fans

What’s At Stake

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Problem Statement

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Problem Statement

SoundSpot is struggling to sustain growth and justify its high-cost social infrastructure because most users don’t engage with its core differentiator: collaborative music experiences.

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Most users treat SoundSpot like Spotify – not a social space – driving high server costs and low engagement
SoundSpot’s broad approach is unsustainable

85% of users rarely engage with social features
$400K/month burned on real-time collaboration servers

Yet those same features drive the deepest loyalty among its power users (15%)

Core Problem

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Data Reality

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Metric	SoundSpot	Context
Paid conversion	3%	vs. Spotify’s 46%
Retention (6-month)	18%	Core users = superfans
Artists active	40%	Many disengaged
Server burn	$400K/month	Supporting underused social features

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Spotify’s “Jam Sessions”: 10M users in week 1, copying SoundSpot’s concept
Apple Music: catching up with “SharePlay” experiences
SoundSpot can’t outspend or outscale – must outconnect

Competitive Pressure

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Opportunity Statement

The biggest gap in streaming isn’t content; it’s connection.

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Artists struggle to build direct, monetizable fan relationships

DM: I’ve shipped so many postcards, I think I’ve spent 1000s of hours doing just that. It’s a hit-or-miss, and it’s hard to make money from that.

Fans want exclusive, meaningful engagement, not algorithmic playlists

TL: “The algorithm seems like a stamp letting us know they’re using AI. I don’t care. I want to feel like I’m part of something.”
TL: “I don’t think I’m a stan, but I really love getting to know the artist behind the song [...] if I like them, I’d pay for their records and merch.”

Opportunity Statement (cont.)

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SoundSpot can win by becoming the go-to platform for artist fan intimacy

Live sessions
Early access
BTS content
Social storytelling

Opportunity Statement (cont.)

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Pivot Solution

Features

LIVE-Style Interactive Concerts

LIVE Concerts

Multi-angle camera switching (Main, Stage-Left, Closeup, Crowd)
Live polling for setlist voting and audience participation
Timed exclusive merch drops with limited availability
On-demand VOD replays with full multi-angle functionality

Virtual Fan-Meeting Spaces

Intimate artist sessions (fan-sign, acoustic performances, songwriting workshops)
Scheduled events with live attendee counts
Direct artist interaction in small-group settings

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Pivot Solution

Features

Artist-Fan Community

Direct Line Access

Multi-format artist messages: Text, images, and voice notes
Behind-the-scenes exclusive content (studio photos, rehearsals, daily life)
Real-time updates with unread badges and active status

Fan Engagement

My Collection: Concert history, digital merch, upcoming shows calendar
Rewards & badges system for loyalty (Super Fan, Chat Master, etc.)
Artist feed with likes, comments, and real-time updates

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Solution Prototype

Link to Solution Prototype!

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Benefits

Feels live, not algorithmic: real-time reactions, fan rooms, and polls make every interaction core to our app
Builds loyalty that lasts: fans earn badges, unlock backstage posts, and collect digital keepsakes — creating emotional investment Spotify can’t replicate
Scales intimacy, not costs: focused feature set (live shows + social storytelling) means fewer server-heavy tools, lower burn, and deeper engagement per user

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Benefits

Monetizes connection: pay-per-event access, premium memberships, and virtual merch let artists earn directly from their most loyal fans
Defensible moat: emotional connection isn’t copyable; communities built around trust and identity make switching costs high – even if Spotify/Apple Music imitates

From passive streaming to participatory fandom, SoundSpot makes music feel human again

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Business/Pricing Model

$0 Freemium

limited live access

$4.99 | Student

premium features for

verified students

$10.99 | Superfan Premium

unlimited live access

Customizable Pricing Set by Artists

SoundSpot takes 15% commission

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Market Analysis

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Platform	Social Interaction	Creator Monetization	Community Focus	Ownership / Control
Spotify	Limited (“Jam Sessions”)	❌	Weak	❌
Apple Music	❌	❌	❌	❌
Audius	Medium	✅ (tokens)	Medium	✅
Twitch	✅ (live)	✅	Strong	❌
Patreon	❌	✅	Medium	✅
SoundSpot	✅✅	✅	✅✅	Partial (via linked accounts)

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Market Analysis

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Differentiation

Social + Ownership Hybrid: merges Patreon’s fan monetization with Spotify’s social streaming
Creator-Centric: enables co-created music spaces, not passive playlists
Community-Led Growth: turns fandoms into social micro-communities

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Timeline

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Build MVP

Ship the live interactive concert MVP (streaming, chat, reactions, fan rooms, polls) with an artist dashboard, payments, and analytics/load testing.

Limited Launch

Open invite-only access to reach 30–40 artists and 5k–10k users, increase to 10–15 events/month, drive premium upsell, and scale infrastructure/support.

Discover & Define

Validate demand via superfan/artist research and a 100+ user survey, then lock personas/journeys and finalize the MVP, success metrics, and PRD.

Pilot & Learn

Run a closed beta with 5–10 artists and 500–1,000 superfans, host 3–5 events to test formats/pricing, and turn data and feedback into prioritized fixes and GTM prep.

Scale & Deepen

Grow to 50–100 artists and 20k–50k users, expand to 20–30 events/month, add tipping/virtual merch/partnerships, and launch discovery/recs and community features.

Measure & Refine

Measure against targets and choose to scale, iterate, pivot, pursue acquisition, or wind down—backed by a board-ready retrospective and financials.

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Financial Projections

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The Total Addressable Market (TAM)

The Serviceable Available Market (SAM)

The Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM)

TAM: Music Streaming market size $46.6B (2024) -> $108.39B (2030)

SAM: $46.6 B × 0.20 = $9.32 B assuming 20% of fans are superfans

SOM: Interactive music experiences offer monetization of more than $1.8M

Community creation through artist-listener relationships would lead to $1.73M annual revenue

The Total Addressable Market (TAM):

Music Streaming market size $46.6B (2024) -> $108.39B (2030)
667 million users of paid subscription accounts globally

The Serviceable Available Market (SAM):

1.5M registered users → 600K MAUs -> 200k core engaged users
18K paying users with 3% conversion (higher than Spotify’s 2%)

SAM = $46.6 B × 0.20 = $9.32 B

The Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM): I am evaluating along the two ideas of Social Features and Community Creation. Social features involves fan meetups:

Interactive music experiences could reach monetization of $1.8M, assuming that 20% of music listeners are "superfans" that are willing to spend an average of $50 on music experiences.
600,000×0.20=120,000 superfans -> $50 × 0.30 = $15 per superfan per year -> 120000 × $15 = $1.8M per year
Of 600k users, if ~20 % identify as superfans who spend roughly $50 on social or experiential interactions, the total obtainable market for social meetups is ≈ $1.8M
Community creation by involving artist-listener relationships would allow for significant growth, as the perception of personal relationships with artists encourage increased listening and engagement with artists.
600 K users × 12,000 streams/year = 7.2 B streams/year -> 7.2B streams × 20%=1.44B streams
1.44B × $0.004 = $5.76M payout -> $5.76M × 0.30 platform fee (similar to other creator marketplaces) = $1.73M annual revenue

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Financial Projections

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Revenue Projection:

$2.16M

Current annual revenue

$1.8M

Interactive Music Experiences

$1.73M

Artist-Listener Relationships

= ~$6.34M

+

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Financial Projection Over Time

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Risk Assessment

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Risk	Impact	Likelihood	Mitigation / Assumption Testing
Low user adoption of social features	High	Medium	Conduct early assumption testing with pilot group; track engagement KPIs (chat, live events)
Artist disinterest or low participation	High	Medium	Offer revenue share incentives; test conversion of existing engaged artists
Server cost overruns	Medium	High	Limit MVP to core live + storytelling features; monitor cost per engagement metric
Competitive replication by Spotify/Apple	High	Medium	Focus on emotional intimacy + creator tools not easily replicable
Regulatory or IP concerns (content ownership)	Medium	Low	Legal review of user-generated content; implement clear creator terms

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Ask and Next Steps

Pivot product focus

Resources for 4-month execution plan

Approval to pursue a focused pilot initiative that repositions SoundSpot as a creator–superfan platform

→ Early goal: Test monetization + retention uplift among top 15% engaged users

Budget: $500k for user research, prototype development, and artist partnerships
Access to artist and inactive-user cohorts for interviews and behavior tracking

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Q&A

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Appendix

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Financial Projection

Link to view calculations and sources: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kiEjN1IRi5S5OCOdTCWI5IddZs5Ix385IO8RBmYPTEU/edit?usp=sharing