YouTube’s contentious negotiations with some independent labels is about to reach a culminating point, as Google will soon begin removing videos of music owned by labels which have not signed a new licensing agreement. Open questions remain. Also, details about the long-rumored YouTube music service are starting to seep out. Continue Reading
Clear Channel updated its iHeartRadio app, overhauling the design with a more compact and usable presentation, while adding a level of instant personalization for new users. We tested the upgrade in its Android version, which was released slightly before the iOS version for Apple devices. Long-time users will appreciate the tightened, more intelligent design choices in the new app.
iHeartRadio 5.0 is seems to have a dual targeting strategy: attracting new users, and improving the experience for existing audience. It’s a big audience: 345-million app downloads and 50-million registered users Continue Reading
Business software company Marketron announced today that it has combined two product units, Marketron Mobile and Marketron Interactive, into a one-stop solution center called Marketron Digital. The announcement came during this week’s Marketron User Symposium in Chicago. Continue Reading
In what most observers regard as a crucial year for music licensing, copyright, and royalties, RAIN Summit Indy will face the issues head-on with a panel of experts to demystify the complexities and throw light on the issues. The Royalty Reset session will discuss the potential impact on the Internet radio industry of possible changes to the U.S. music-licensing regulations. It comes at a time when, remarkably, nearly all parties involved (music rights owners, performing rights organizations, senators and members of congress, musicians) agree that current law is broken. But there is no accord on which parts need overhaul. Continue Reading
All live jazz concerts. Don’t let the 1996-style website put you off. The listening is outstanding, and the site dishes out valuable information about the artists. Inside jazz is a great Internet radio station, with the sort of off-the-beaten-path programming dedication that justifies the entire indie-radio category. Every jazz lover needs to know about Inside Jazz. Continue Reading
Earbits, an interactive music service specializing in independent music with unique business and revenue models, is closing as of Monday. Earbits went down an unusual path in providing new kinds of value to listeners and artists, connecting its audience to bands via artist merchandise, mailing lists, and social sharing. Continue Reading
This weekly podcast is a quick and concise catch-up of the week’s top stories.
This week: Apple’s announcements …. The future of the music industry … the U.S. government might change music licensing … and independent labels throw YouTube under the bus. Continue Reading
RAIN Hotspots: the five most-read articles of the week. Triton Digital webcast metrics…SoundExchange CEO says radio hurts music sales…KCRW launched gleaming new website…iTunes Radio goes broadcast…review of Amazon’s Prime Music Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthwhile reads from around the web: Is Amazon Prime Music the future of digital music? And an obituary for East Village Radio. Continue Reading
File this under Friday Fun. Apple will pay $3-billion for all of Beats (the electronics and music-service divisions) when the deal closes later this year. Source reveal that the Beats Music portion of the merger is accounted at $500-million. Yielding to temptation, we ran the numbers and hereby propose (not with an entirely straight face) some stratospheric prices. Continue Reading
Amazon’s gleaming-new music subscription service stepped into the market today, and we dove in quickly for a test drive.
Prime Music feels like a beta service on its first morning. We found problems with playing music, and an unwieldy system for streaming whole songs, albums, and playlists, which should be easy in an on-demand streaming service. The catalog is demonstrably small, with obvious voids in which one’s listening hopes are extinguished.
But all this might not matter to the intended audience, which is (for now, at least) existing Amazon Prime members. As of today, Prime Music is instantly one of the largest music subscription services in the world. Continue Reading
Rumor turned to reality fast, as yesterday’s reports of an imminent Prime Music launch came true this morning. With Amazon Prime membership estimated between 10-million and 20-million existing subscribers, Prime Music instantly becomes one of the largest subscription music services in the world. Continue Reading