Author: Brad Hill

Focus on advertising models at RAIN Summit Indy

Posted on by Brad Hill

In-stream advertising has taken leaps forward in the last year, both in technology and advertiser demand. There are in-stream audio messaging, voice activated ads, geo-fenced and zip code targeted campaigns, branded playlists and sponsored downloads. These innovations, and questions of building ad models that encourage asdvertisers to invest with confidence, will be placed in a bright spotlight at RAIN Summit Indy, September 9 at the Indiana Convention Center. Continue Reading →

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Coleman survey reveals how under-40 consumers use radio and streaming

Posted on by Brad Hill

A small but revealing study by Coleman Insights illuminates how consumers think of radio, how they listen to music in different locations, and how the NextRadio mobile broadcast app could be more effectively marketed. The key takeaway is that radio is conceived as an in-car medium, but not a mobile one. Continue Reading →

Webcast listening in May: 2014 and year-over-year growth

Posted on by Brad Hill

Webcast streaming has enjoyed strong growth during 2014, and has lifted 19% year-over-year, according to data released by Triton Digital in its Webcast Metrics Top 20 Ranker for May. The month-over-month measurement dropped two percent, the first monthly dip after nine consecutive growth months. Year-to-date, stream listening has risen over 10 percent. Continue Reading →

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Pureplay(s) of the Day: Jazz and more jazz

Posted on by Brad Hill

Jazz lovers can be hardcore fans, with specialty interests in historical eras, legendary performers, and certain instruments. The genre lends itself to more specialized coverage than what is normally found in the universal music services. For the lean-back jazz aficionado, two services — JazzRadio and AccuJazz — provide seemingly endless great listening tailored to mood and sub-genre. Continue Reading →

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Editor’s Notebook: For the love of jukeboxes

Posted on by Brad Hill

Music jukeboxes have been popular for about 90 years. Online music services and mobile technology have created a “celestial jukebox” that’s available anywhere — an astonishing marvel best appreciated by people over 35 and history students. The modern versions of the jukebox are streamlined to the consumer’s favor in every way — less money, more mobility, bigger selection. But I the attraction is essentially the same as when tabletop jukeboxes were in every New Jersey diner: Music you choose, in new places and times. Continue Reading →

Garth Brooks finally going digital, but no streaming

Posted on by Brad Hill

Garth Brooks is the best-selling solo artist of all time. He has been content to sit out the digital music disruption, which has mainly occurred during a 13-year retirement. Tomorrow, though, the official Garth Brooks site will start selling downloads of Brooks’ back catalog. A new album will drop in November, and the download version will likewise be sold exclusively on the site. Continue Reading →

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Labels push the moment with musicFIRST campaign for radio royalties

Posted on by Brad Hill

Of all the issues woven into potential music-licensing reform during this “Summer of Copyright” (part 1 and part 2), none is larger, more publicized, or more intractable than whether broadcast radio should lose its exemption from paying performance royalties. The latest volley in an ongoing inflammatory argument is by the advocacy group musicFIRST, which has launched an ad campaign intended to attract the attention of selected legislators in their home districts Continue Reading →

SoundCloud reportedly readying label deals in quest to compete with YouTube

Posted on by Brad Hill

Bloomberg is citing unnamed sources in a report that SoundCloud is near to closing deals with record labels for their content to appear on the popular crowdsourced listening platform. If the report plays out as fact, Soundcloud will gain needed elbow room to compete with other music services, unhindered by legal distractions that have troubled SoundCloud recently. Continue Reading →

iTunes Radio (finally) becomes a top-15 app, with Apple-only distribution

Posted on by Brad Hill

Apple’s iTunes Radio broke into the top-15 list of app usage in May, according to traffic measurement company comScore. While this breakthrough might not seem like an epic milestone, the buzz around it has a “Finally!” aspect to it. But this report does not compare iTunes Radio exactly with other music-app use across the mobile landscape, for two reasons. Continue Reading →

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How do graduating high school students listen to online music?

Posted on by Brad Hill

Niche, a research firm founded by Carnegie Mellon University in 2002 with a focus on early-life decision-making, has released an interesting study of media choices among graduating high school students. When surveyed about listening to music, graduating high-schoolers divulged their music-service habits. Continue Reading →