AudioHQ announced a partnership that will see targeted audio ads delivered to listeners on AccuRadio’s online radio platform. The audience targeting will be based on registration information. Continue Reading
Several leaders from the music industry spoke last week at the Web Summit in Dublin about the role of streaming for musicians and listeners. One panel included several managers discussing the current environment for music. Jonathan Dickins, who represents popular singer Adele, spoke favorably about the role of streaming. Another panel from the Summit focused on Music and Movies in the 21st Century. At that discussion, U2’s Bono also spoke out in support of a streaming music economy. Continue Reading
Universal Music Publishing Group announced that it has hired a special advisor on performing rights. The new post will be filled by Richard Conlon, who will advise the publisher on matters tied to advocating, protecting, and maximizing the value of performing rights for its songwriters. Conlon led the label’s digital new media licensing divisions as a former senior vice president at BMI. Continue Reading
Australia-based Guvera announced its official mobile launch in India. The streaming service’s free app is available for iOS and Android listeners. “We plan to provide our Indian users with the best expert-curated local and international content,” founder Claes Loberg said. The app will include Bollywood music as well as songs by international artists. Continue Reading
Scribd, a digital book service, launched an all-you-can-read ebook subscription program last year. Now, it has added an audiobook component to its offerings. The plan costs $8.99 a month and offers unlimited reading and listening within its catalog. It currently has more than half a million ebooks and more than 30,000 audiobooks available. The rollout of audiobooks within Scribd’s service highlights a few of the recent trends that the entertainment and media industries should be keeping tabs on. Continue Reading
Earlier this week, sources hinted that Microsoft may be working on a music locker service. Windows Central reported that the company’s cloud storage service, OneDrive, will now automatically create a music folder for your account. This folder would store a person’s own music collection, but sources said it would likely also connect with the existing Xbox Music service. Continue Reading
SoundExchange announced its third-quarter financials, reporting a payment of $267 million for the three-month period. That figure was 75% higher than the $153.7 million payout from Q3 2013. The number of payees also increased between quarters, rising from 25,836 in Q3 2013 to 31,376 in Q3 2014. Continue Reading
Streaming just got a little more legitimacy from industry leaders in Australia and New Zealand. Singles charts in both countries announced that they will factor streaming numbers into their calculations. Both the Australian Recording Industry Association and the New Zealand Top 40 said streaming data will help determine the No. 1 songs. Continue Reading
Vodafone and Spotify announced an Australian partnership in early October, and today more details emerged about how the two services will support each other. Customers on Vodafone’s Red plans will have access to Spotify Premium for free. The amount of time customers will have the free Premium service — from six months to 24 months — depends on the plan they choose. Continue Reading
Publisher Kobalt announced that for the first time, its writers received greater royalties from Spotify than from iTunes. During the first quarter of 2014, Spotify royalties in Europe were 13% higher than those earned from iTunes downloads in the region. We’re still a long way from declaring victory for the streaming financial model, since this change has only been observed in Europe for Kobalt’s stable of about 6,000 songwriters and artists. However, Spotify’s first success over the long-dominant Apple-owned store is still a notable milestone. Continue Reading
After a bobble in negotiations last month, SoundCloud and Warner Music Group have signed a licensing deal. “The deal includes innovative licensing terms that will provide WMG and its artists greater ability to manage the availability of content, while providing a path towards delivering additional revenue from user-generated mixes and mash-ups of WMG music,” SoundCloud said. Continue Reading
iHeartMedia announced that Adam Denenberg has been appointed as chief technology officer for the iHeartRadio Network. In this role, Denenberg will oversee the technology strategy and vision for the online radio platform, including technical direction, new product R&D, and technology infrastructure across the network of websites. Continue Reading