App Annie always has great insights into mobile business, and the company’s latest report reviews the most popular iOS apps to date. The report has separate lists for global popularity by download and by revenue, with separate lists for games. Pandora took the crown as the highest-grossing iOS app, while Spotify ranked fifth on that chart. Continue Reading
Universal Music Group reported its financial results for the first half of 2015. It was a milestone period for the company, with digital revenue accounting for more than half of its recorded music operation. Digital music was 50.1% of the revenue at €926 million. Total revenue from ad-funded and subscription streaming rose 34%. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Ten years of NPR podcasts; Google’s Songza-style playlists arrive in Germany; nearly three-quarters of Apple Music subs are male. Continue Reading
Considering the genre’s very name evokes the feeling of being low and sad, blues music can have a surprisingly funky side. That upbeat attitude comes out in spades on the fun and feisty Funky Blues station. Continue Reading
Rhapsody released a video teasing its newest feature: a subset of the streaming service dedicated entirely to kids. This section will feature curated playlists that are fun and child-friendly, as well as the usual discovery and browsing of available artists. Rhapsody Kids will launch on both the Android and iOS mobile versions of the service, but the only date given was “soon.” Continue Reading
On the Move tracks hires, promotions, and other notable personnel changes in the audio industry. Radiotopia has a new executive producer; ASCAP announced two promotions at its London membership division; Apple’s Ian Rogers has gone to a stylish new gig. Continue Reading
Russian streaming service Zvooq has finalized a contract with Sony Music, making it the only fully licensed independent music service in the country. “Sony Music is the owner of one of the largest international catalogs, and our cooperation with that company will allow Zvooq to present the entire volume of international music to our users,” the company’s Head of Content Tanya Mulkidzhanova told Billboard. Continue Reading
Milk Music, the streaming platform from Samsung, has added a sports genre to its programming. This category will include live streams of college sporting events, including more than 900 college football games and conference championships and more than 3,000 college men’s basketball games. Continue Reading
September 9 marks Pandora’s 10th anniversary. In honor of the milestone, the online radio company announced that it will gift its U.S. listeners with a full day of ad-free music. The Listener Love Day promotion will run from 12 a.m. Eastern on the 9th to 12 a.m. Eastern on the 10th. Continue Reading
TuneCore has announced its formal expansion into the UK. The publishing administrator has been serving UK-based artists for some time, but the new change will allow those performers to continue collecting licensing revenue in their local currency. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: More angles on playlist promotion; a call for podcast diversity; streaming needs value perception. Continue Reading
Tidal has accused Apple of blocking its stream of rapper Drake’s performance at a charity concert, claiming it was threatened with a $20 million lawsuit by the tech company on the grounds that Drake currently has an exclusive deal with Apple Music. Tidal called Apple “Big Brother” in a tweet and left the same message on the blank video stream during Drake’s set. Drake’s camp said the stream’s black-out was not due to Apple. Continue Reading