Every few months the industry seems to rediscover the same argument: music television has lost its relevance because viewers now watch clips on YouTube and listen to music on Spotify and similar services.
The conclusion sounds logical, yet it rests on a narrow interpretation of how people actually use their TVs and how they consume music.
It is true that the arrival of YouTube 20 years ago reshaped the category. Music channels, instead of adapting, gradually reduced the share of music and moved into reality formats. The result was predictable: audiences drifted elsewhere [1]. But this does not mean that the underlying idea of a curated, continuous music stream has become obsolete. It simply means the format stalled while the rest of the market kept evolving.
The TV screen never stopped being a music surface
The narrative about “declining linear TV” is valid, but it hides an important nuance. Connected TV usage keeps rising across Europe and the United States. At the same time, YouTube reports hundreds of millions of hours of content consumed on connected screens each day, what is a significant portion of it music videos [2].
In other words: viewers did not abandon the TV screen as a place for music, they just couldn’t find a relevent content on music channels.
An era of playlists
A recurring misconception is that if viewers have YouTube, Spotify or TikTok, they no longer need a linear music service. This misses the fundamental point. Modern music consumption is built around playlists [3], not albums, as it had been earlier. Moreover, most users rely on curation (editorial or algorithmic), rather building their own playlists after hours of content serfing.
A well-designed music channel functions in exactly that space. It offers a stable, recognisable flow with a clear mood or genre logic. Moreover, IPTV/OTT platforms provide users with such functions, as “Pause”, “Time Shift”, giving the viewer even more control on the playlist playback, than a freemium version of Spotify, so the old argument about “lack of control” is weaker than it once was. Meanwhile, channels usually refresh their playlists every day, which is not always the case with playlists on streamings.
The visual layer matters as well. Music videos are not incidental content. They shape the listening experience and create atmosphere. Bars, cafés, co-working spaces and households increasingly use CTV for background entertainment that must be consistent and unobtrusive. A continuous music stream fits that use case far better than a sequence of ads interrupting every clip on ad-supported platforms.
Making Music Work on TV Platforms
For music to deliver real value on TV platforms, the channel offering has to be built with intent.
First, there needs to be a balanced selection across genres and styles. This doesn’t mean adding endless options, but giving space to core categories with clearly defined identities. The goal is to reflect how people actually listen — across moods, times of day, and genre preferences.
Second, meaningful variety matters. Even two channels that look similar at first glance can offer very different vibes. One may focus on fast-paced chart hits, the other on slower, more curated selections. This gives viewers real choice depending on their mood or context.
Market exits do not mean the end of music TV
While reading this, you may ask: if music television is still relevant and effective for TV platforms, then why is MTV pulling out?
It’s a fair question. But in reality, this doesn’t signal the end of music television — it reflects a shift in priorities by one media group. With a large and diverse portfolio, such companies naturally focus on assets that generate the highest margins. That doesn’t mean the market for music content on TV has disappeared. The demand is still there. People still listen to music — the question is who will step in to serve it, and how make TV a convinient media for music conumption.
How new players are reshaping the format
A new wave of music services is rethinking what a music TV channel should be. Music Box is one of the networks working in this space. Its channels are built around curated playlists designed specifically for lean-back CTV viewing. Instead of relying solely on automated systems, editorial teams maintain the flow and adjust rotations with attention to pacing and emotional continuity. This hybrid approach, ie, human curation supported by analytics, is closer to how people consume playlists today.
Another area of reinvention is visual quality. A large part of global music catalogues exists only in older SD masters. Music Box and several other networks have invested in upscaling workflows to make these videos suitable for modern HD screens. The improvement in picture quality alone changes how viewers perceive “legacy” content.
A category that Europe may need more than it realises
If we look at the broader CTV trends — fatigue from constant choice [4], rising use of passive viewing modes, stable interest in music videos [5], and the continued dominance of playlists — the return of music television is not surprising. The format solves a practical problem: it provides a curated, predictable, uninterrupted flow of music on the screen viewers already use for video.
Music television does not compete with streaming giants in functionality or catalogue size. It competes in user experience. And in that space, the format has clear room to grow — as long as it reflects how people listen to music today, not twenty years ago.
Importantly, today’s listeners rarely rely on a single platform. According to IFPI’s data, people use an average of more than seven different methods [6] to interact with music — from audio streaming and video platforms to radio, social media, and live performance. This multi-channel behaviour opens space for music television to claim a distinctive role, especially on the big screen.
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[1] The Guardian (2025). ‘No one makes money from them’: with MTV channels switching off, is the music video under threat? (Analysis of MTV’s shift from music to reality programming like Catfish and Geordie Shore); PMA Magazine. The MTV Phenomenon: Changing the Tune of the Music Industry.
[2] Global Media Insight / YouTube Official Data (2025). YouTube Statistics: Users now watch over 1 billion hours of YouTube content on TV screens every day.; Paramount Insights (2024). Connected TV Viewership Trends: Over 85% of U.S. households now have at least one CTV device.
[3] IFPI (global consumer study): when choosing music, “Own playlists” is used more than “Specific albums” (59% vs 42%)
[4]NewscastStudio (2025). Streaming surges but linear TV also sees growth. (Report on viewer fatigue with on-demand choices and a return to linear formats); Amagi Global FAST Report (2024). FAST channels continue to find viewers.
[5] Music Business Worldwide / Luminate (2025). Global audio streams jumped 14% in 2024 to 4.8 trillion. (Data confirming video remains a massive component of music discovery); Vevo (2024). Vevo’s Robust Reach and CTV Programming (Vevo reaches 33 million viewers daily on CTV).
[6] IFPI: https://www.ifpi.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/IFPI-Engaging-With-Music-2023_Highlights-infographic-poster-1.pdf
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.broadbandtvnews.com ’
