Brad Hill - RAIN News

Pandora Premium: First look

Posted on December 7, 2016 by Brad Hill

Last night at Pier 36, spacious indoor venue near the bottom tip of Manhattan, Pandora hosted hordes of music lovers for Pandora Holiday Live, a concert featuring The 1975, Bishop Briggs, and Bastille. One hour before the doors opened for the teeming crowd which had reportedly been lining up for two days, a small group of media and finance professionals were given a preview of Pandora Premium, the on-demand service which the company has been promising since its acquisition of Rdio last November. Continue Reading →

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Will consumers buy into “light” music subscriptions? (RESEARCH)

Posted on December 5, 2016 by Brad Hill

With Pandora and iHeartRadio exploring mid-priced music services (both named “Plus” and priced identically at $4.99/month, with similar features), the question of consumer uptake arises. Will music lovers buy into semi-interactive services that cost half as much as fully on-demand music platforms? MusicWatch tackles the question with a new survey. Continue Reading →

iHeartRadio launches on-demand music service: RAIN Review and competitive outlook

Posted on December 1, 2016 by Brad Hill

As promised in September, iHeartRadio has launched its two-tiered subscription product: iHeartRadio Plus, and iHeartRadio All Access powered by Napster.

Both are being rolled out in beta today, with a free 30-day trial. The new subscriptions service features two breakthrough functions: replaying and saving songs from live radio. Continue Reading →

IAB releases new Digital Audio Buyer’s Guide

Posted on November 30, 2016 by Brad Hill

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has published an updated guide to digital advertising for media buyers. The 21-page document charts the business ecosystem and clarifies its vocabulary for advertisers. It is produced by the IAB Digital Audio Committee. Continue Reading →

Quick Hits Radio Edition: Three angles on high-quality audio ad creative

Posted on November 29, 2016 by Brad Hill

Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: “Audio is the new video.” Best practices in radio ads. An audio celebration for a legendary boutique creative shop. Continue Reading →

PodcastOne stakes out Australia in 2017 with Southern Cross Austereo alliance

Posted on November 28, 2016 by Brad Hill

PodcastOne and leading Australian radio group Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) will jointly launch PodcastOne Australia in 2017. The deal marks an important internationalization of American-based podcasting, a dramatic territorial expansion of the PodcastOne brand, a milestone entree into the podcasting field for SCA, and a general lift for Australian podcasting. Continue Reading →

CBS Radio: The IPO filing has arrived. Digital notes.

Posted on November 21, 2016 by Brad Hill

CBS Radio Inc. has filed its Form S-1 SEC registration for an expected Initial Public Offering. The mile-long document explains the basic business, summarizes financials for the first nine months of 2016, and discloses investment risks. We examined the prospectus and made notes of the digital aspects. Continue Reading →

Quick Hits: Lefsetz on Recode; WNYC; Radiolab interview; political podcasts

Posted on November 18, 2016 by Brad Hill

Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Bob Lefsetz on Recode Media podcast; innovations at WNYC; interview with Radiolab founder; what’s next for political podcasts? Continue Reading →

AdsWizz partners with RTBiQ programmatic platform

Posted on November 17, 2016 by Brad Hill

Today brings an announcement from AdsWizz that it has obtained a partnership with demand-side programmatic buying platform RTBiQ. The alliance leverages AdWave (the audio advertising platform owned by AdsWizz) to bring digital audio ad inventory to RTBiQ’s buyers. Continue Reading →

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The Download on Podcasts: The how-to-podcast movement is on the move

Posted on November 16, 2016 by Brad Hill

PRX set to train radio stations in podcasting

Posted on November 15, 2016 by Brad Hill

PRX, a leader in the creation, marketing, and distribution of on-demand audio, has launched Project Catapult, a training program for selected radio stations. The project will select five stations from a pool of applicants to attend a 20-week “boot camp.” At the end, each station will have created a 20-week show series. Continue Reading →

Samsung acquires Harman in $8-billion bet on connected cars

Posted on November 14, 2016 by Brad Hill

In a startling announcement, Samsung Electronics revealed that it will acquire Harmon International for $8-billion. The strategy targets the car as the next milestone mobile device. Harmon is best known as the builder of car audio systems (JBL and Harman/Kardon brands). Continue Reading →

Author: Brad Hill