With the demise of the unique but little-used Twitter Music app, the micro-blogging service lost no time announcing its next foray into music. Twitter and Billboard announced a partnership to create the Billboard Twitter Real-Time Charts. The alliance is a “big data” play, but there’s a big question about how different it will be. Continue Reading
Podcasting is in a resurgence. In addition to the popular directory in iTunes, other podcast showcases and listening platforms have sprung up. This poll is simple: Share whether you listen to podcasts. Then, in the comment box, you can promote… Continue Reading
BIA/Kelsey released its quarterly Investing in Radio Market Report, summarizing industry income for 2013 and identifying the 10 richest stations by revenue for the year. RAIN spoke to Dr. Mark Fratrik, SVP at BIA/Kelsey, about the forward path to success for broadcasters in all markets. He emphasized a multi-platform approach. Continue Reading
Marketron, a leading software solution provider to media industries, announced a new component of its Mediascape platform, Mediascape Streaming, which allows advertisers to roll up reporting across all inventory types, including streaming. Curtis Media Group is a beta-testing launch partner. Continue Reading
The occasion of this brisk admonition was Radiodays Europe, an annual conference held this year in the Dublin Convention Center. Rosin brought new research with him (“iTunes Radio: Lessons from America”), based on The Infinite Dial 2014 survey but unreleased when that project was unveiled. Continue Reading
We received strong interest in our latest RAIN Poll, which asked readers to pick their preferred home listening device(s). In addition to the votes, this poll attracted an unprecedented number of comments, as readers were motivated to describe (and brag about?) their home-listening rigs. Streaming in general led the field. Continue Reading
The Internation Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI) released its summary of digital music usage and revenue for 2013. As with the RIAA report issued this week, the IFPI document shows vigorous growth of streaming and subscription music, bolstering a general industry picture of declining physical sales. Continue Reading
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) released its report of 2013 sales and revenue today. (PDF here.) The main bullet point is that streaming is the fastest-growing segment of the recorded-music industry, and its revenue contributes to keeping the industry stable. Streaming has contributed a continually escalating percentage of total revenue since 2007. Continue Reading
Radio and records — if you’re of a certain age, that’s what “home listening” meant while growing up. Now, listening at home has more options than all the new definitions of “radio” and “records.” What is your favorite device for listening to music and audio at home? Vote your favorite! Hard to choose? Give us more context in a comment. Continue Reading
Pandora just saved about $21-million. The recently concluded ASCAP vs. Pandora trial could be framed as a draw, with the disputed royalty rate to publishers maintained. But crunching the arithmetic shows the court decision comes much closer to Pandora’s desired outcome than ASCAP’s, and provides a view of how much money Pandora saved — or ASCAP lost, depending on the viewpoint. Continue Reading
The Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) today released a 2013 revenue report for broadcast radio. By a wide margin, digital revenue led other income segments in year-over-year comparisons. Overall revenues were flat in 2013, when examined through two lenses: full year-over-year, and Q4 2013 vs. Q4 2012. Digital is growing fast from a small percentage of total radio revenue — 5% in 2013. Continue Reading
Nielsen-owned (as of February) Harris Interactive conducts an annual nationwide poll of U.S. consumers to determine what it calls “brand equity.” Harris has released the 2014 edition, and called out streaming services for their rapid gain in positive brand recognition over the last two years. Continue Reading