Social audio app Anchor has released a long-awaited version 2.0 of its app, in which the push-and-pull between radio (listening) and social (creating) is slanted decidedly to radio. To some extent, the audio creation/listening app is following in the footsteps of SoundCloud. Continue Reading
Former Triton Digital COO (and co-founder) Mike Agovino has partnered with talent management entrepreneur Paul Anderson to launch Workhouse Connect, a self-described “influence marketing company.” Workhouse Connect is positioned as a sister company to Workhouse Media and Workhouse Creative, both started by Anderson. Continue Reading
For the first year, SXSW has opened a Podcast Stage for live podcast production, turning what is historically a recorded medium into performance art. It’s not a first-time breakthrough for podcasting generally, but it does start to put podcasting on an even footing with live music as a festival attraction — especially since the interactive and music agendas overlap this year. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Overview of NYC Summit; music service review; Saavn’s original content. Continue Reading
Richard Conlon, veteran executive in communications and rights management, joined SoundExchange this week as Chief External Affairs Officer. Conlon will report to SoundExchange CEO Michael Huppe. This newly created role will have broad purview in SoundExchange’s pivotal position in the digital music industry. Continue Reading
Spotify used Twitter to announce its milestone of 50-million subscribers, and to thank its customers. By any standard, Spotify’s subscriber growth has been impressive. The company noted 40-million paying users in September, and 30-million less than a year ago. Continue Reading
Digital media veteran Kavi Halemane has joined iHeartRadio as GM/Digital Programming, iHeart announced. He is positioned in the product team, reporting to Chief Product Officer Chris Williams. The appointment starts immediately. Continue Reading
Pandora stock watchers have been following the dance moves of Sirius XM, which continues mentioning the leading internet radio company, even while denying any interest in acquiring it. This week, Pandora stock has dipped and bobbed a couple of times. Continue Reading
Classical music metadata specialist Dart Music has filed for bankruptcy. According to a note from founder and CEO Chris McMurty, the company will restructure through the Chapter 11 proceedings. Continue Reading
Pandora has appointed Naveen Chopra as its new chief financial officer. Chopra joins the online audio company from TiVo, where he was interim CEO from January 2016 until the firm was acquired by Rovi. Pandora’s most recent CFO was Mike Herring, who is now the company’s president. Continue Reading
SoundCloud announced a shift to its subscription offering. The SoundCloud Go platform is being changed to a $4.99 per month fee. The full on-demand service is now called SoundCloud Go+ and costs the industry standard of $9.99 a month. Continue Reading
Shazam’s director of EU partnerships, Jon Davies, shared some statistics about the app at the FastForward conference in Amsterdam. The audio identification is generating 30 million clicks a month to music streaming services such as Spotify or Apple Music. That’s in addition to sparking 400,000 daily song downloads from digital marketplaces like iTunes. Continue Reading