Month: September 2014

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Artists win first ruling in pre-1972 royalty lawsuits; Sirius XM loses — impact unclear

Posted on by Brad Hill

A California judge has delivered a result in the Turtles vs. Sirius XM class action case, in which the oldies band sought damages for Sirius XM’s failure to pay royalties for use of pre-1972 music. The court issued a summary judgment in favor of the artists, striking a blow to Sirius XM and sending tectonic shock waves across the streaming music landscape. Although the ruling is clear, its impact is not. The case centers on discrepancies between state and federal music-licensing laws, and lack of clear regulation in both realms. Continue Reading →

Pandora embarks on first online ad campaign, with “thumb gifts”

Posted on by Brad Hill

Pandora seeks to disrupt radio by competing for share of listeners, and ad dollars. At the same time, Pandora watches its audience growth, which has been more or less stable at about 76-million users per month. To further that second priority, Pandora is launching its first online ad campaign with a $5-million buy on socially oriented sites like BuzzFeed, Twitter, and Facebook. Continue Reading →

RAIN Poll: Apple/U2 — gift or gaffe?

Posted on by Brad Hill

Apple’s universal distribution of U2’s new album — the controversy that won’t die. As the dust slowly settles, we’d like to know how it shakes out for you, whether you’re an Apple device user or not. Was the free (and forced) album a huge blunder? Or is all the complaining a waste of bandwidth? Vote your opinion! Leave a survey comment, too — as always, selected comments will be published with the poll results. Continue Reading →

Kurt Hanson: Hope to See You in London!

Posted on by Kurt Hanson

Online radio is not just a North American phenomenon — it’s a global one. Reflecting the global nature of online radio, we are about to host our third annual RAIN Summit Europe, on Tuesday, November 4th. After successful events in Berlin in 2012 and Brussels in 2013, this year we’re coming to London … and here is why you should join us! Continue Reading →

Editor’s Notebook: Will Apple shutter Beats Music? (And more important questions)

Posted on by Brad Hill

At RAIN News we prefer facts to rumors. But rumors can anticipate reality. Whether they do or not, well-sourced rumors are interesting, and point to underlying issues. This rumor started with a TechCrunch article, circulated by other publications, and was quickly denied by Apple. Another recent Apple acquisition might provide guiding light. And no matter what happens to the Beats Music brand, important questions surround Apple’s role in music and listening. Continue Reading →

1

Mark Mulligan: The Three Things Streaming Needs To Fix Next

Posted on by Brad Hill

by Mark Mulligan

This guest column identifies a “middling majority” of music creators whose businesses are not thriving in the streaming music services. Mark Mulligan proposes a formula for better monetizing a band’s relationship with listeners and fans — and offers a worksheet of the model for artists to work with. Continue Reading →

BIA Kelsey Local Media Forecast signals shift to digital, mobile, and video

Posted on by Brad Hill

BIA Kelsey released its annual Local Media Forecast for 2015, moving its publication timing to the fall “to align with the annual strategic planning season.” The report breaks out predicted spending growth and decline for a few broad categories, and forecasts the overall local ad-spending market to 2019. Continue Reading →

8tracks CEO David Porter talks about audio advertising

Posted on by Brad Hill

Last week we covered AudioHQ’s launch as a new audio ad network, partnering with 8tracks as a music-service partner. CEO Matt Cutair told us that his company seeks to facilitate a “middle market” between high-end premium sales and programmatic buying. To follow up on the content side, we spoke to David Porter, founder and CEO of 8tracks. Continue Reading →

Pureplay of the Day: La Noche del Hombre Lobo

Posted on by Brad Hill

Radio (terrestrial or online) is best when delivering a rich-discovery stream of music that repeatedly makes you say, “Who is that?” and “I’ve got to hear more of that band.” When those revelations happen with nearly every song, you know you’ve found something special, and that was our experience with La Noche del Hombre Lobo. (Night of the Werewolf.) Continue Reading →