Music video publisher Vevo will shutter its branded apps and video website in the near future. YouTube will become Vevo’s main distribution platform. At the same time, the company’s statement leaves the door open to other distribution partnerships. Continue Reading
Merlin, the global digital rights agency for the independent label sector, is sending out a 10th-birthday notice. To mark the milestone, Merlin is announcing three hires. the agency started operating in May, 2008, with three people. It now employs 21 people across four offices on three continents, serving tens of thousands of indie labels. Continue Reading
While there is no earnings call for iHeartMedia scheduled during the media giant’s bankruptcy process, the normal regulatory filing (10-Q) was made. From that document, a few interesting points can be gleaned. Continue Reading
As we noted last week, today is rollout day for a new YouTube Music app, and two new subscription plans for ad-free, downloadable YouTube use. Click through for plan details, a gloomy forecast (not from RAIN News), and quotes from Lyor Cohen. Continue Reading
Another streaming holdout has reversed course: Peter Gabriel has released most of his albums to Spotify, and possibly other services. In addition to other business considerations in releasing the music, there is the enduring value of back catalogs in streaming services. Continue Reading
Universal Music Group reported first-quarter revenue of €1.22 billion, down nearly 5% from €1.28 billion in the year-ago period. Recorded music revenue for the label rose 5.9% at constant currency rates. Continue Reading
Amazon currently leads the industry for smart speakers, but more international competition has started to chip away at its dominant market share. Market research company Strategy Analytics released its first-quarter report on the product category. The analysis found that 9.2 million units were shipped globally in the period. Continue Reading
YouTube Music has expanded its program to spotlight up-and-coming performers. Artist on the Rise will now include a monthly program under the Trending tab, spotlighting a new musician every four weeks. The first highlighted artist is Jessie Reyez, whose career has grown from creative popular covers of pop tunes to receiving the Juno Award as Breakthrough Artist of the year. Continue Reading
Southwest Airlines has added iHeartRadio as the exclusive music offering for its suite of on-board entertainment. Passengers will be able to access live radio, custom artist stations, and curated playlists themed specifically for inflight listening such as “Pass the Time” and “Kids Zone.” Continue Reading
Tidal is no stranger to the rumor mill, but the past few weeks have been more eventful than usual for the streaming audio company. Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv has made multiple allegations about the platform, first that it intentionally inflated the stream counts for albums by Kanye West and Beyoncé, and more recently that it has fallen behind on payments to labels. Tidal has denied the newspaper’s claims. Continue Reading
Wireless Group, a media company wholly owned by News Corp UK and Ireland, announced the launch of an in-house digital audio production unit. The new Wireless Studios will deliver podcast production, marketing, and sponsorships for Wireless Group’s audio efforts. Continue Reading
PRX has announced that Shona Koester is its new chief operating officer. She joins the media and audio company from American Public Media, where she was most recently the vice president of distribution and content partnerships. Continue Reading