Quick Hits: Beats/Spotify royalty throwdown; future of car radio; UMG settlement
Today’s brief news items are all about Apple: Beats Music royalty payouts; the future of car radios; UMG ready to settle musician lawsuit. Continue Reading
Author: Brad Hill
Apple launches programmatic mobile ad-buying for iTunes Radio; AdsWizz partners
Starting today, Apple is making digital ad buying easier and more targeted for marketers in iTunes Radio, the company’s non-interactive online radio service. One of the first outside partners to offer iTunes Radio to buyers is AdsWizz. iTunes Radio inventory is now available on AdWave, the company’s global audio ad marketplace. Continue Reading
Streaming steadies U.S. record industry as 2014 revenue exceeds CD sales
Double-digit growth in all forms of streaming buttressed the U.S. music industry against the continued slide in music purchases, holding the industry’s total value steady at 7-billion dollars. For the first time, streaming revenue surpassed CD revenue. Continue Reading
What is the value of an ad?
There are many ways to measure online audio campaigns — impressions and CPMs, return on investment, banner clicks, engagement. A RAIN Summit West panel discussion, featuring Heidi Browning from Pandora and other industry experts, will focus on best practices for measuring effectiveness. Continue Reading
Clip Interactive intros FM reception in its mobile listening platform
Today Clip Interactive announced a new capability of its Total Audience Solution platform, allowing FM reception as an alternative to streaming a radio station. In smartphones, FM reception must be enabled by activation of the phone’s FM chip. The first phone… Continue Reading
A new $pin on podcast subscriptions
The Download on Podcasts is a weekly feature sponsored by PodcastOne.
Micro-subscriptions on specialty crowdfunding platforms like Patreon and Recurrency offer independent podcasters a real chance at self-sufficiency. Success stories reveal an audience willing to pay for unique, personal, on-demand programs. Continue Reading
NPR/CPB licensing agreement with SoundExchange: +17% for 2016-2020
RAIN News has learned that NPR and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting have agreed to a 17% music licensing rate increase for the 2016-2020 royalty period. The new rate anchors an agreement between the nonprofit public media outlets and SoundExchange, the royalty collection and distribution entity representing artists and record labels to webcasters. Continue Reading
Mike Agovino, ex-Triton, joins PodcastOne
Mike Agovino, formerly COO of Triton Digital, has pivoted quickly into a new role as Executive Vice Chairman of PodcastOne. As we reported yesterday, Agovino left Triton in the wake of its acquisition by Vector Capital. Continue Reading
RADIODAYS EUROPE 2015
by Kurt Hanson
RAIN News founding editor Kurt Hanson is in Milan for Radiodays Europe 2015. This is the first of his bulletins, with photos. Continue Reading
DAAST specification for audio ad serving now in adoption phase
Six months after its introduction by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), the Digital Audio Ad Serving Template (DAAST) is in its adoption phase. “Industry adoption of DAAST enables digital audio ads to be easily run and tracked in a consistent manner across publishers, similar to other digital marketing mediums,” said Scott Cunningham, Senior Vice President, IAB, and General Manager of the IAB Technology Lab. Continue Reading
Triton Digital CEO Neal Schore on the acquisition by Vector Capital: “An inflection point”
As we reported this morning, Vector Capital has acquired Triton Digital. We spoke with Triton President and CEO Neal Schore, to get context around the new business structure. He shared to background and reason for the ownership change, and addressed staff changes. Continue Reading
Vector Capital acquires Triton Digital
Vector Capital, a private equity firm specializing in technology, has acquired Triton Digital, the leading technology provider to the online audio industry. The announcement follows days of rumors. Continue Reading