Yesterday we posted the #1 story for 2016, based on readership of our articles. Today, the RAIN News roundup of how the online audio industry evolved in 2016. The 74 articles summarized below (click through to any one to read the whole piece) show how internet radio, music services, small webcasting, podcasting and the business ecosystem surrounding all of it developed. Happy browsing!
January
NPR names Anya Grundmann VP of programming and audience development
February
SoundExchange royalty collections reach record numbers in 2015
Public radio coalition releases podcast measurement guidelines
Spotify videos and podcasts arrive, competing with YouTube and iTunes
The patchwork life of MixRadio comes to an end as shutdown is announced
RIAA adds stream counts to gold, platinum album certification
March
INFINITE DIAL 2015: Streaming goes wide, YouTube is mainstream, podcasting grows
RIAA: At $2B, streaming was music’s top revenue source in 2015
April
Jelli launches demand-side platform for broadcast; leading agencies buy in
Music consumption explodes worldwide, powered by streaming (IFPI)
May
Radionomy blocks U.S. listening on TuneIn because of CRB rates
Streaming advertising revenue projected to triple in 10 years (SNL Kagan)
PRX launches RadioPublic as “radio rethought” for mobile landscape
Podtrac introduces a ranker of top podcast shows and networks
Digitally Imported launches track purchasing to complete “All Inclusive” platform
June
DoJ announces consent decree decision: No change, plus a new rule
iHeartRadio and AdsWizz launch private programmatic market for streaming radio
DoJ announces consent decree decision: No change, plus a new rule
July
Audio streams double, digital continues to perform [Nielsen H1 report]
http://rainnews.com/bbc-iplayer-radio-app-arrives-in-the-u-s/http://rainnews.com/adswizz-and-national-public-media-form-podcast-specific-advertising-marketplace/
Audio streaming more than doubles in first half of 2016 (BuzzAngle)
August
Podcast host ART19 officially launches with new audience measurement technology
Frank Ocean’s Apple exclusive is out: A surprise title, but not a surprise launch
September
RIAA: Subscription streaming revenue doubled in U.S. for H1 2016
Songwriters sue Justice Department over consent decree changes
October
Garth Brooks now streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime Music
Amazon Music Unlimited launches: An on-demand subscription showcasing Echo
November
Pandora, TuneIn, and AccuRadio launch Harmonic Audio Network for advertisers
PodcastOne stakes out Australia in 2017 with Southern Cross Austereo alliance
Dept of Justice appeals fractional licensing in BMI consent decree
December
iHeartRadio launches on-demand music service: RAIN Review and competitive outlook
Facebook finally launches a native audio product, but it has limits
YouTube has paid $1 billion to the music biz from ads in 2016