Audio quality has been a hotly contested subject for the music industry. Some swear that high compression and low bitrate make for a mediocre listening experience. Others say the distinctions between file type are indistinguishable, at least for the average listener. A new study found data that, impressively enough, supports both sides. Continue Reading
Much research into consumer spending on music shows live concerts as the top recipient of dollars. For instance, Nielsen’s 2015 year-in-review showed that more than half of the money spent on music by an average U.S. adult went toward some form of live performance. A new infographic from Moneytips breaks down more detail about concert spending habits. Continue Reading
Pandora has signed a deal with ride-sharing company Uber. This partnership will see Pandora integrated into the driver version of the Uber app, so they can make stations and thumb songs while behind the wheel. The Pandora-enabled app will be available in the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand. Continue Reading
Doppler Labs introduced a new set of high-tech earbuds that combine sound filtering and wireless streaming. The Here One earbuds can stream music from a smartphone, either the local files or from streaming apps. They can even take phone calls. Continue Reading
Advertising technology company WideOrbit is partnering with RAIN News to produce a webinar discussion of simulcasting. The free webinar is set for Tuesday, July 19, at 2:00PM EDT (11:00AM PDT). Featured speakers: Tim Murphy (VP of Digital Strategy & Enterprise Platforms, Entercom), Jim Kott (Sr. Director of Product Management, WideOrbit), and Rob Kass (VP of Product Leadership – Digital Audio, Nielsen) Continue Reading
Midroll Media has announced a new podcast festival dubbed Now Hear This. The event is slated for Oct. 28-30, 2016, in Anaheim, CA, and is described by Midroll’s announcement as “a fan-focused weekend of live performances.” Mark Maron and other podcast stars will appear as headliners. Continue Reading
Guvera has placed two subsidiaries into voluntary administration, and it is also aiming to reduce its monthly expenses. The action is the result of its planned IPO being rejected by the Australian Securities Exchange. Continue Reading
Two Apple Music news items today. First, the messaging service WhatsApp is running beta tests of an integration with the Apple streaming service. The second development is that Apple Music is nearing a launch in South Korea. Continue Reading
LyricFind has inked a deal with Google. Thanks to this expanded partnership, LyricFind will provide the lyrics displayed for Google Play Music and for Google search results. Continue Reading
Nielsen’s Total Audience Report, released today, presents the latest data on radio’s U.S. listenership and how it compares to TV (including on-demand video and DVR watching) and general use of PCs, smartphones, and apps. AM/FM reach is impressive, TSL is nuanced, and smartphone use increases across all age groups. Continue Reading
James Cridland’s Future of Radio is a column by the Australia-based radio futurologist. THIS WEEK: Wall Street Journal on NPR’s age issues. Updates to the Next Radio conference. Looking ahead to Australia’s OzPod. Much more. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Unsung streaming leaders land on Power Players list; a pro-YouTube piece from Financial Times; for the ultimate hipster, SoundCloud-to-vinyl pressings. Continue Reading