This morning comes an announcement that audio content and marketing company Amplifi Media is joining with mobile app builder jacapps, to develop voice-activated “skills” for radio listening in Amazon Alexa and Google Home devices. The new company is called SonicAi, abbreviated as SAi. Continue Reading
Pandora Premium, long in development and selectively released in March, is available to all users as of this morning. Along with that, Pandora has started a new ad campaign titled “Sounds Like You.” Many people will view the unlimited release of Pandora Premium as the more important news. Today is a moment of fruition that alters the competitive landscape of music services. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Terrestrial radio and the value gap; snapshots of branded podcasts; Prince’s catalog could go back for sale. Continue Reading
We think about listening to music as a sensory, intangible experience. Great music taps into our feelings in ways that seem impossible to identify. An article in Quartz examined how much science there can be behind music, with an investigation of a trend that uses neuroscience to create a certain response in the listener. Continue Reading
Warner Music Group has made another addition to its digital team, this time focused on the role of playlists in today’s streaming music industry. Michael Steele has been hired as the label’s director of playlist programming and curation. Continue Reading
TuneCore has entered a collaboration with Lyric Financial, a financial services and tech company focused on the music industry. As a result, TuneCore will begin offering U.S.-based clients automated online advances on their future distribution sales revenue. Continue Reading
The British Phonographic Industry reported that the UK music industry saw 5.1% revenue growth in 2016. The year’s performance of £926 million in trade income marks a five-year high. Following the trends we’ve seen for 2016 across many countries, the UK results stemmed from a 61% increase to streaming revenues. Continue Reading
RAIN News received an anonymous tip yesterday informing us that Slacker Radio had reportedly laid off “about half the company.” The email claimed that Slacker’s leadership has been trying to keep the magnitude of the cuts quiet. Continue Reading
Warner Music Group has hired two new people for its digital strategy team. The major label brought on Michael Drexler as its vice president of digital strategy and corporate development. Allan Coye joins as vice president of digital strategy and business development. Continue Reading
Pandora may be on the hunt for a new influx of cash to support its expansion. Claire Atkinson of the New York Post reported that Pandora is looking to work with a private equity firm to obtain more funds. Sources said that Pandora has had talks with firms including Providence Equity Partners, Silver Lake and KKR. Continue Reading
iHeartMedia has hired Donna Pickett as its new EVP of marketing, digital products. She will be tasked with boosting the performance all of the media company’s digital streaming businesses. Continue Reading
The RAIN Digital Audio Advertising Summit in Chicago closed with a lively discussion on the state of podcasting. Several luminaries from the field shared their thoughts on the health of the industry, the need for measurement, and whether Apple would continue its dominance. Continue Reading