In a press release received this morning, a new prep sheet in being marketed to radio DJs. Francis Currie, international radio consultant who starred in RAIN’s Radio Revolution: A Global View event this week, is behind the product. Radio imaging producer Benztown is in the venture as exclusive U.S. distributor. Continue Reading
Sirius XM has made a $75 million investment into SoundCloud. According to the press release, SoundCloud will put the money toward product development, as well as enhancing services for creators and listeners. Continue Reading
Yesterday’s announcement that Pandora switched out its CEO, replacing Brian McAndrews with Tim Westergren, was startling both in unexpectedness and lack of explanation. Tim Westergren is Pandora’s founding visionary, a musician with technology chops. What does this change signal? Continue Reading
Looking at what a regular, non-techy person must do to listen to Beats 1, the flagship product of Apple Music, it seems as if Apple is making discovery as difficult as possible. Continue Reading
Apple is late to the on-demand party. It was late with MP3 players, too, and quickly took over that market. It was late with iTunes Radio, with no evident impact. There seems to be more supply for music subscriptions than demand. What are the competitive dynamics? Continue Reading
by Brad Hill
Yesterday Google announced it was introducing a free-listening, Internet radio-style component to its Google Play service. The announceement was widely viewed as counter-Apple positioning. But Apple has freemium too. Both companies, the owners of mobile computing, are playing the same game with the same pieces. Continue Reading
When Spotify announced last week that it was adding video to its content catalog, it signaled a directional shift and a competitive thrust into YouTube’s territory. YouTube, meanwhile, is inching its Music Key subscription platform onto Spotify’s front lawn. Other brands like Deezer and SoundCloud are also blurring their lines of identity. It’s all about un-platforming … while trying to succeed as a platform. Continue Reading
The recording industry has always been troubled by free music, understandably. Yet the progression of disruptive technology has made music an Internet commodity. Spotify is arguing that free listening is necessary to scale streaming revenue. Continue Reading
The number of “FM Still Rules the Car” headlines this week signifies a thought trend. The headlines have been induced by two new studies — one by Ipsos, and yesterday’s the Infinie Dial 2015 release by Edison Research. How should broadcast radio be thinking of this? Continue Reading
Streaming is the present and the future, but sometimes it circles back to the past. A story of music discovery in the newest major music service, illustrating that the streaming lifestyle has many dimensions. Continue Reading
Installing Beats Music as a built-in iOS app creates headlines, and is an obvious maneuver, but it barely lessens the challenge faced by Apple in the brutal music subscription space. It will not, by itself, move the needle for Beats or Apple. A crucial new effort is needed, and Apple has not demonstrated creativity in the music space for years. Continue Reading
David Lowery, musicians’ advocate and the foremost critic of streaming music, posted a column in which he prescribes solutions to “fix” the streaming music business model — or, more accurately, his issues with it. Lowery’s arrows are pointed at Spotify, and his suggestions are surprising. Along the way, he misses some reality points. Continue Reading