Attention startups in the streaming audio space — game on! Eight days left to submit your early-stage company for possible inclusion in an influential panel opportunity at RAIN Summit West.
RAIN Summits announces the “Streaming Audio’s Startup Economy” discussion panel at RAIN Summit West, April 12 in Las Vegas. Continue Reading
Yahoo-owned Tumblr, one of the biggest content sites in the world, is experiencing a furor among its bloggers who post music. Several tumblr blogs have reportedly been switched off for copyright-infringing music posts. A newly-installed download button on Tumblr is part of the controversy. Continue Reading
Dozens of Swedish songwriters signed an OpEd in Aftonbladet, a leading Swedish newspaper, complaining of low royalty payouts from streaming services compared to royalties collected by record labels, and predicted an imploding industry if a different balance is not created. Spotify is a target, but record labels get more heat. Continue Reading
Google appears to be preparing a new YouTube feature called YouTube Radio. The description matches an existing YouTube Music experience called YouTube Mix. The new feature might be a subtle tweak, or a key new YouTube experience. Continue Reading
Quick news items and worthy reads from around the web:
Mark Mulligan on Rhapsody
iBiquity on HD Radio potential Continue Reading
A lawsuit brought by VerStandig Broadcasting in Virginia last May, which sought to limit music royalty payments for its webcasts, has been ejected in a pre-trial dismissal by a federal judge. Judge Michael Urbanski reportedly dismissed the case as too “speculative” and “hypothetical” for trial. Continue Reading
Zane Lowe, well known in Britain and around the world for his weeknight music-discovery radio show on the BBC, has taken a position at Apple in Cupertino. When a popular DJ quits his show and moves to one of the world’s leading technology companies, the news can be framed within the human-vs-machine argument which divides streaming music curation Continue Reading
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A six-minute blast of news you need to know in streaming audio.
THIS WEEK: Pandora makes direct licensing deal with Naxos; new survey of ad agencies and streaming audio; streaming now in UK albums chart; Nielsen launches online radio measurement; Rhapsody updates audience metrics; research report on mobile music; TeamRock Radio goes underground — literally. Continue Reading
Spreaker, a podcast creation and listening platform, is supporting World Radio Day and throwing a spalsh of promotion on its service by offering free “On-Air Talent” accounts for a trial month. “Radio is currently in the throes of great transformation, and it’s being reinvented by young people.” Continue Reading
In another demonstration of “willing buyer, willing seller” deal-making, Pandora has negotiated a direct licensing deal with Naxos, one of the world’s most prolific classical music labels. Before this, Pandora’s most widely publicized private negotiating effort was with the international consortium of independent labels, Merlin. Both deals are important. Continue Reading
Media-buying platform Strata released results of its 4th-quarter agency survey. Streaming radio is a rising priority for media buyers. Programmatic advertising across all channels is gaining favor and trust. Click for details. Continue Reading
We received a note from London DAB+stream station TeamRock, with a heads-up about a Friday the 13th stunt planned for tomorrow morning. With morning host Stephen Hill on vacation, substitute DJs Moose and JRock plan to hijack the station from its studio location and take it underground. Literally. Continue Reading