Anghami Pushes Boundaries with New Music and Voice Experience

Music streaming platform Anghami continues to push boundaries with its new ‘Live Radio’ music and voice experience. The new service positions Anghami as the first streaming provider globally to enable users to create a social audio experience for sharing music, conversation and more.

Developed in-house and available on both iOS and Android, Live Radio boasts a number of unique features. Users, including artists, DJs, content creators and music influencers, can talk alongside playing songs, playlists and podcasts from Anghami’s library of over 57 million tracks. It allows users to participate in a real-time version of a podcast experience. By creating their own virtual events, users can bring communities together with live interaction.

Other features include applauding the host, sending text comments, meeting other participants and side-chats.

Vision

“The social elements of music have always been part of our vision,” said Anghami Co-founder and Chairman Elie Habib. “‘Live radio rooms’ were part of our original business pitch in 2011, as we saw the opportunity for social audio features to take off.

“With the pandemic keeping people at home and apart, the intimacy of voice and the need to be closer to others has become more valuable,” he added. “We expect to see the social audio market realise significant growth.”

Testing

Data from Live Radio’s beta-phase demonstrated the additional benefits for Anghami in terms of user engagement and retention. Active social users display a 30% higher retention rate. Social users overall stream 33% more average daily seconds than a standard active user.

“Focusing on creating communities and adding interaction has been our best strategic asset, boosting engagement and retention,” said Habib.

Anghami is the largest music platform in the Middle East and North Africa. It will become the first Arab tech company to list on NASDAQ New York stock exchange via a merger with Vistas Media Acquisition Company Inc.

Also read: Streaming Service Anghami Selects Abu Dhabi for its Global Headquarters