Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: SoundExchange’s 2014 unclaimed royalties drop; a primer on streaming inequalities; Pirate Bay co-founder at it again. Continue Reading
Following up on some earlier speculations, Apple has filed for the U.S. trademarks for additional Beats stations. French website Consomac reported that Apple now has applications under review for Beats 2 through Beats 5. Continue Reading
Smooth Jazz Chicago, a RAIN Pureplay of the Day recipient, announced that it will end its three-year Internet radio business on December 31. Founder Rick O’Dell explained that the business cannot afford the new webcaster royalty rates without small webcaster protection which is expiring. Continue Reading
The holiday shopping period is usually a gold rush for retailers, and Amazon is no different. The company issued a press release with some key points from its December performance, and it revealed not just powerhouse results from the shipping and retail departments, but a surprisingly strong outcome for Prime Music as well. Continue Reading
In addition to the gift-wrapping and boxes, we’re also spending our post-holiday stupor unpacking the impact of The Beatles’ arrival into the streaming music space. This Monday morning focuses on social data, Spotify, and the top song choice this weekend. Continue Reading
The Beatles can now be streamed in major music services, and the RAIN editorial office is unreasonably (but seasonally!) giddy about it. Here, with cutting-edge analysis and lyrical insight, Anna Washenko and Brad Hill unabashedly discuss. Continue Reading
The Beatles are finally on-demand. It’s not the first time a celebrated hold-out splashily entered the interactive streaming space. But it feels different, closing the loop on a tectonic disruption of music consumption. Continue Reading
In August, we wrote a eulogy for Columbia House. The parent company of the service that made its name on mail-order CDs and cassettes filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year. But Columbia House may be returning from the dead with a new business model that seems equally quaint: vinyl. Continue Reading
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The second season of Serial has launched, before the first season’s hype has expired. If a second phase of the podcast resurgence is at hand, what might the future bring? Continue Reading
AccuRadio has expressed the giving spirit of the season with a daily charity drive, soliciting listeners to choose the non-profit recipients. For 30 days, ending tomorrow, Christmas Eve, AccuRadio will have donated $1,000 each day to various causes in its Season of Sharing campaign. There’s still time to participate! Continue Reading
We’ve seen a lot of lead-up to this moment over the past month, but today it’s official: Pandora has completed its acquisition of Rdio. The online radio company now owns the technology and intellectual property of the now-defunct streaming service. Continue Reading
The rumors are true and Beatlemania begins anew! A special splash page on the official Beatles website confirmed that the band’s music will land on nine interactive streaming services at midnight local time. Continue Reading