The freemium streaming model has taken a lot of fire in recent months. The latest to lock and load is Jimmy Iovine. The Apple/Betas exec spoke at Vanity Fair’s New Establishment Summit and had some pointed words for the freemium approach to music, calling it a shell game. But his comments need some context. Continue Reading
Guvera may be trying to sell off its Blinkbox music property, but the former employees of streaming service aren’t going quietly. About 100 of them have filed a class action lawsuit against Guvera and two of its UK-based subsidiaries. Continue Reading
Spotify’s Discover Weekly playlists have quickly become a huge success with the streaming company’s listener base. The feature has had 1 billion tracks streamed in the 10 weeks of its existence. The tool is one of a handful of self-proclaimed recommendation engines that has really knocked it out of the park, and the reason is a very savvy use of listener data. Continue Reading
Spotify announced a partnership with the Amsterdam Dance Event music festival. The two parties are providing an integrated service to attendees that analyzes their past streaming listening and helps them choose acts to see at ADE. Within Spotify’s service, it has created an official ADE 2015 playlist that will be updated daily with new tracks. Continue Reading
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Podcasting is an ultra-personal genre of audio. But every passing month brings more known media brands into the space with specialized on-demand audio. The result? Increasing professionalism in the category. High-quality production is becoming table stakes in the podcast gamble. Continue Reading
Virgin Mobile USA has added unlimited streaming from select music platforms to some of its plans. The music partners are iHeartRadio, Pandora, and Slacker Radio. More music platforms will likely be added in the future. Continue Reading
Many video game consoles are offering apps from streaming services, and iHeartRadio is the latest to join the music options on Sony’s PlayStation hardware. The new native apps will give listeners access to their live radio, as well as custom and recommended stations. Continue Reading
Podcasts are gaining more and more traction among both listeners and content creators. We’ve recently seen two major print publications exploring their podcast options for building an audience with audio: the New Yorker and Esquire. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: French culture ministry offers digital music plans; NYT gets in on podcasts with recommendations; navigating the FCC rules and changing technology. Continue Reading
Matt Baxter was installed as Global Head of Original Content at Spotify in July. This morning he was interviewed at MIPCOM (a trade show for communications industries, slanted to television), and revealed Spotify’s intent to create original video content. Continue Reading
It’s a new era for Apple Music. The streaming service’s initial wave of three-month free trials has formally ended, and it will need to start building an audience of paying customers. Based on a wave of news items from the first few days, things may not be starting on the best foot for the listeners or the company. Continue Reading
The Copyright Royalty Board is still in the throes of its decision-making process of setting webcasting licensing rates for 2016-2020. In the latest development, the CRB has asked the Copyright Office whether it can set different rates for different music suppliers. The query has sent industry leaders into heavy speculation about the intent behind it. Continue Reading