Spotify has opened access to yet another feature for its free listeners. Spotify Connect, which lets listeners stream their music to speakers enabled with the tech over Wi-Fi rather than Bluetooth, will be updated to include people on the ad-supported tier. Continue Reading
YouTube paid more than $1.8 billion in ad revenue to rightsholders in the music industry from October 2017 to September 2018. According to the How Google Fights Piracy report, that figure brings YouTube’s total music industry payments to more than $6 billion in ad revenues. Continue Reading
Nielsen announced that Westwood One and Panoply Media will use its technology for auto marketing and measurement. Both parties will leverage the Nielsen Auto Cloud fueled by J.D. Power to target car buyers across radio, streaming audio, and podcast media with relevant messages that meet the changing needs of their audiences. Continue Reading
Spotify has been making a big effort to put more data in front of the music industry. The latest move in that vein is the beta launch of Spotify Publishing Analytics. The streaming audio company will offer daily streaming statistics such as playlist performance for the works and recordings a publisher identifies. Continue Reading
iHeartRadio has unveiled a new family plan level for its All Access on-demand subscriptions. The service supports up to five people on the plan. Continue Reading
Apple has hired Rebekah Horne as its new head of music and other services for Australia and New Zealand. In this capacity, she will guide services including Apple Music, iTunes, and the App Store for those markets. Continue Reading
Pandora has released its third-quarter financial results, capping off a busy three-month period that included its acquisition by Sirius XM. Quarterly revenue for Pandora totaled $417.6 million, up 16% from the year-ago period. “I’m proud of the progress we’ve made over the past year to reinvigorate Pandora,” CEO Roger Lynch said. Continue Reading
Spotify announced that it is going to buy back some of its shares. “The repurchase program will be executed consistent with the company’s capital allocation strategy of prioritizing investment to grow the business over the long term,” the company said in a statement. Continue Reading
Universal Music Group has licensed its catalog to Boomplay Music, a top streaming service in Africa. Boomplay will add UMG’s library to its current catalog of 2 million tracks. The company currently boasts more than 36 million listeners across Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zambia. Continue Reading
Apple reported its financials for its fourth quarter, which ended on September 29. The tech company posted quarterly revenue of $62.9 billion, up 20% from the same period last year. Net income was $2.91 per diluted share, an increase of 41% on-year. Continue Reading
Spotify’s revolving door act continues for personnel. Last week, the company announced that Doug Ford would leave his post as a senior director and head of music culture and editorial. On the other side, Spotify is currently recruiting for two senior roles in original content. Continue Reading
Apple could invest in iHeartMedia, according to a new report in the Financial Times (paywall). Sources familiar with the proceedings told FT that Apple has held talks with the legacy broadcaster about purchasing a stake. Continue Reading