Taylor Swift’s catalog returns to all streaming services
It has finally happened. The day that pop fans have dreamt of for almost three years. Taylor Swift has returned to Spotify. Continue Reading
News
Merlin member survey finds audio streaming revenue still on the rise
Digital rights agency Merlin has posted the results of its 2017 member survey, reflecting a snapshot of the independent music label industry. Merlin’s revenue distributions have increased 52% year-on-year to $353 million. That marks an eightfold spike in member payouts within the past four years. Continue Reading
Sirius XM invests $480 million in Pandora
Pandora and Sirius XM are getting closer ties at long last, but it’s not quite the same relationship the parties were initially planning. Sirius XM has agreed to invest $480 million in Pandora. This investment causes a ripple effect, changing some other business avenues that Pandora had also been considering. Continue Reading
UMG makes new digital VP hire
Universal Music Group announced a new hire for its digital efforts. The label has brought on Tuhin Roy for the newly created role vice president of new digital business. In this position, Roy will work to forge partnerships with start-ups in the early-stage digital media sector. Continue Reading
June 8: Pandora pivots on its pivotal day
Pandora returns to the headlines today as yet another layer of outside involvement becomes a possibility for the audio company. The audio company’s future has been a topic of interest as an ever-growing number of parties consider getting involved with the business to varying degrees. Two new developments have emerged around this ongoing story today. Continue Reading
BuzzAngle Music incorporates Shazam data
Data and charts company BuzzAngle Music announced that its analytics now integrate global data from Shazam. This marks the first time that data from the audio identification business will be a part of a comprehensive analytics program, BuzzAngle said in its press release. Continue Reading
PwC Entertainment and Media Outlook, Part 2: United States results
Yesterday we shared the top-down global overview from PwC’s Entertainment and Media Outlook. Today’s we’ll drill down into the report’s data specifically for the United States. The results point toward projected total entertainment and media revenue of $666.13 billion in 2017. Music revenue in the U.S. is projected to hit $18.3 billion in 2017 with a CAGR of 5.596% for the report period. Continue Reading
Jelli adds two new offices
Programmatic technology company Jelli announced an expansion for its offices. It has opened two new offices, one in New York City and one in Boise, Idaho. Jelli also hired streaming advertising veteran Eric Ronning, to run operations in NYC as its new vice president of strategic accounts. Continue Reading
New player in on-demand personalized audio announces financing
Audioburst announced that it has secured series A funding of $6.7 million for its mission of automating the indexing, organization, and discovery of audio content. The company’s platform promises real-time analysis of an audio clip, which allows fast and easy searching of content. The metadata it applies to each audio clip guides the creation of audio streams personalized to a listener’s preferences and patterns. Continue Reading
PwC Entertainment and Media Outlook, Part 1: Global results
PwC has published its 18th Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2017-2021. The annual report offers intensive analysis of several entertainment industries around the world. For music, the outlook seems positive for a digital future, with streaming expected to be the top source of global revenue for the sector. If that prediction bears out, 2017 would be the first year when digital revenue will exceed physical sales on a worldwide scale. Today we’ll dive into the global data, and tomorrow will focus on just the U.S. analysis. Continue Reading
SoundCloud’s Stephen Bryan moving to YouTube
Stephen Bryan has joined YouTube as the video platform’s new head of label relations. The appointment will take effect in July. He is still working at SoundCloud as the audio company’s chief content officer through the end of June. Continue Reading
Bozoma Saint John leaves Apple Music/iTunes
Bozoma Saint John has left her role as global head of consumer marketing at Apple Music and iTunes, marking a major departure for the streaming service. Neither Saint John nor Apple have commented on the exit or what her next move will be and whether it will still be in music at large or digital platforms more specifically. Continue Reading