Merlin, the global digital rights agency for the independent label sector, is sending out a 10th-birthday notice. To mark the milestone, Merlin is announcing three hires. the agency started operating in May, 2008, with three people. It now employs 21 people across four offices on three continents, serving tens of thousands of indie labels. Continue Reading
Podcast company audioBoom has announced its summer slate of original programs, under its audioBoom Studios production arm. One new show is joined by three returning podcasts. Continue Reading
Venerable media metadata company Gracenote (a Nielsen subsidiary) today announced a new technology product called Sonic Style, which classifies tracks into micro-categories that more exactly match up to what consumers with to hear in playlists. The technology aspires to create smarter playlists in a voice-first world of smart speakers. Continue Reading
RadioPublic has announced a new feature called Stations, which are RadioPublic podcast playlists ready-made for one-click listening across a topical range of programs. Continue Reading
While there is no earnings call for iHeartMedia scheduled during the media giant’s bankruptcy process, the normal regulatory filing (10-Q) was made. From that document, a few interesting points can be gleaned. Continue Reading
As we noted last week, today is rollout day for a new YouTube Music app, and two new subscription plans for ad-free, downloadable YouTube use. Click through for plan details, a gloomy forecast (not from RAIN News), and quotes from Lyor Cohen. Continue Reading
Another streaming holdout has reversed course: Peter Gabriel has released most of his albums to Spotify, and possibly other services. In addition to other business considerations in releasing the music, there is the enduring value of back catalogs in streaming services. Continue Reading
Podcast company Cadence13 is partnering with business newsletter publisher MarketSnacks to start a daily business/tech podcast. It is called MarketSnacks Daily, and the first episode drops tomorrow, May 23. RAIN News Q&A with Chris Corcoran, Chief Content Officer at Cadence13. Continue Reading
The 2018 edition of the Jacobs Media Techsurvey shows survey trends for consuming audio and radio, derived from American and Canadian radio listeners. More than 64,000 listeners and 567 radio stations in the U.S. and Canada participated in the online survey. AM/FM radio remain strong, and the latest annual survey showed growth for podcasting and smart speakers. Continue Reading
Universal Music Group reported first-quarter revenue of €1.22 billion, down nearly 5% from €1.28 billion in the year-ago period. Recorded music revenue for the label rose 5.9% at constant currency rates. Continue Reading
The British Podcast Awards recognized the best shows created in Great Britain during the year. The winner for 2018 podcast of the year is Griefcast by Cariad Lloyd. Show in several categories received recognition, including family, true crime, comedy, sports, and branded content. Continue Reading
Amazon currently leads the industry for smart speakers, but more international competition has started to chip away at its dominant market share. Market research company Strategy Analytics released its first-quarter report on the product category. The analysis found that 9.2 million units were shipped globally in the period. Continue Reading