9to5Mac has been surveying its readership to assess the crowd reactions to Apple Music. More than 17,400 people have weighed in to the poll so far. Although the responses are naturally skewed with a strong predilection for Apple, the breakdown of where new customers are coming from is insightful. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web. TODAY: IAB study of programmatic advertising; Alibaba expands music ventures in China. Continue Reading
As we reported last month, famed radio host Art Bell is returning to the air tonight, with a new talk program called Midnight in the Desert. We spoke with the famed radio personality on the phone about his imminent return to radio, and the newness of creating an Internet-first program. Continue Reading
Spotify has launched a new feature called Discover Weekly. This is a two-hour playlist personalized to each individual listener. The song choices for the Discover Weekly list stem from your particular music taste and what other similar fans are listening to. Spotify is billing it as a custom-made mixtape delivered each Monday morning. So how good are the recommendations? Pretty solid. Continue Reading
Worthy news items and interesting reads from around the web. Today: Analyzing Pandora programmatic; YouTube is bigger than cable; inside Spotify’s new playlist. Continue Reading
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The weekly update of the streaming audio industry, from RAIN News. THIS WEEK: Neil Young exaggerates; FTC and Apple; how do high-schoolers listen? Continue Reading
Italy’s music sector grew 22% to €65.5 million in the first half of 2015, according to the Italian Music Industry Federation. Audio and video streaming secured 26% of the total market. Both types of streaming generated €17.3 million in the half, up 37% from the year-ago period. Continue Reading
Pandora has taken a step forward with its Artist Messaging plans. The online radio service has updated its terms of use with language about communication with artists. The company started testing audio messages from artists in February. Continue Reading
Neil Young is back in the headlines after he announced that he will remove his catalog from streaming services. His complaint is about sound quality. “I don’t need my music to be devalued by the worst quality in the history of broadcasting or any other form of distribution,” he said in a Facebook post. “When the quality is back, I’ll give it another look.” Continue Reading
Playlist radio service 8tracks has launched a new web interface in beta to a limited number of users. The refreshed user experience is underpinned by technology which surfaces playlist suggestions based on listening history, previous searches, and social activity on the 8tracks platform. Continue Reading
Germany’s music sector posted gains from streaming and sales in the first half of 2015, according to a report by the Federal Music Industry Association (BVMI). Streaming services now account for 12.8% of the country’s music revenue, up from 7.7% in the first half of 2014. “The 87 percent increase in music streaming even exceeds the forecast contained in the streaming study we published back in March,” the group’s managing director Dr. Florian Drücke said. Continue Reading
In a burst of invention and technology ownership, ad-management firm Wideorbit acquired three patents related to streaming audio. One of them represents a technology which allows song-skipping in radio simulcasts, emulating one of Pandora’s most popular features. Continue Reading