Nielsen has released its comparable metrics report for the first quarter of 2016. The data revealed growth for most forms of both radio and streaming, although the rates of increase varied by platform and age. Weekly reach for radio remains unchanged from the previous quarter, with 93% of adults listening each week. Smartphone audio and video posted notable spikes in audience size and time listening. Continue Reading
New MusicWatch data explores the surging interest in vinyl among modern music buyers. “Although vinyl is not growing as rapidly as on-demand streaming the format continues to grow, thanks to continued interest from younger consumers who keep it hip,” the analysis finds. Continue Reading
In an important agreement that replaces music piracy with music industry revenue, Universal has inked a deal that will legally add its music to the Russian streaming music platform vKontakte. The agreement means that all of the major labels are working with the platform. Continue Reading
Apple has proposed a new royalty structure for streaming music, one that would be simpler but could create a financial pinch for freemium services. In a proposal to the U.S. Copyright Royalty Board, Apple recommended a system where all on-demand streaming services would pay songwriters a statutory rate of 9.1 cents per 100 plays. Continue Reading
On the Move tracks hires, promotions, and other notable personnel changes within the online audio industry. Today’s moves are both high-level personnel changes in Sony businesses. Continue Reading
One of the common critiques of streaming is that those platforms favor the pop and rock charts to the detriment of niche genres. A new playlisting brand aims to improve the access to classical music on the top streaming services. It’s called unCLASSIFIED, at its goal is to create dynamic playlists based on mood or activity. Continue Reading
Chinese conglomerate Tencent announced a merger between its QQ Music unit and China Music Corp. This joint entity will run three of China’s streaming music services: QQ Music, Kugou, and Kuwo. Continue Reading
Less than a year after unveiling a major iOS redesign, Vevo is sprucing things up again. Whereas the November updates focused on aesthetics, the new changes center on discovery tools. I explored the changes on iOS. Continue Reading
NPR is coming to iHeartRadio. According to a new deal between the public radio organization and iHeartMedia, more than 260 NPR member stations will have the opportunity to stream their live news and talk programming on iHeartRadio. Continue Reading
Rhapsody has completed its rebranding, and is now officially Napster in all markets. The rename won’t impact any listener playlists or history, but it does come with a redesigned home screen and some other discovery tools. Continue Reading
ASCAP has relaunched its public repertory database ACE following a redesign. The changes are aimed at making the platform more informative and easier to use. ACE originally made the licensable share info public in November 2015. Continue Reading
China has long been a puzzle for the music industry, especially with recent developments in streaming and subscription platforms. A survey by Tencent Penguin Intelligence found that only about 10% of respondents were subscribed to a music service. Continue Reading