Cure for Pain – August 2024
Several studies have shown the influence of music on people. In medical treatments, music can reduce the need for analgesics to relieve pain [ref1]. Other studies show that music can influence the buying behaviour of customers [ref2]. However, current valuation of music use does not take into account the effects on the people who listen to it. For example, a store pays a fee based on its square footage, while a better alternative might be the number of people actually listening or the effect of music in motivating customers to make a purchase, which can certainly increase the store’s revenue. In other words, to better measure the true value of music, it would be relevant to consider both monetary and non-monetary aspects that may vary for the same musical work depending on the audience and the places where the music is played.
Achieving this new valuation of music is possible through the development of new technologies that involve the intersection of data science, artificial intelligence, and software engineering principles to capture the necessary data and analyse it according to different contexts. For example, machine learning algorithms could be used to predict the impact of music on consumer behaviour in commercial settings. Data mining techniques could also be used to analyse distributed data on music use in hospitals to determine what type of music could be used depending on the type of treatment or patient profile. In this way, greater knowledge and new scientific insights can be generated about the value of music and how it improves people’s quality of life.
The development of this new technology is part of the digital platform proposed for the Music360 project, which will allow the creation of new analytical models that represent the various factors associated with the real value of music and simulate scenarios to predict results. The construction of this platform requires an interdisciplinary research effort, involving experts in social sciences, economics and computer science, in order to define appropriate measures of the monetary and non-monetary value of music in different domains. To this end, Music360 is conducting empirical studies, called Living Labs, to understand the impact of music in the real world and how the technology developed can provide an open digital platform with various tools related to measuring and valuing the real value of music. This will facilitate communication and data exchange between different actors associated with the EU music ecosystem, as well as the participation of research teams to increase knowledge about the impact of music in different environments.
In this way, Music360 not only addresses new technological challenges by integrating artificial intelligence and software engineering, but also has the potential to change the way we value and use music in our daily lives.
References:
Ref1. Martin-Saavedra, J. S., Vergara-Mendez, L. D., Pradilla, I., Velez-van-Meerbeke, A., & Talero-Gutierrez, C. (2018). Standardizing music characteristics for the management of pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials. Complementary therapies in medicine, 41, 81-89.Ref2. Rodgers, W., Yeung, F., Odindo, C., & Degbey, W. Y. (2021). Artificial intelligence-driven music biometrics influencing customers’ retail buying behavior. Journal of Business Research, 126, 401-414.
Music360 