New Nielsen research focused on the role Asian-American listeners play in digital music. Spotify was more popular in this demographic than in the general population, by a margin of 14.4 percent to 7.6 percent. Many listeners also gravitated toward services… Continue Reading
Spotify announced a new partnership with BandPage that will integrate a digital storefront to artists’ presence on the streaming platform. Musicians will have an option to sell their BandPage merchandise and show tickets, or promote unique fan experiences, from their artist pages on Spotify. The new feature is free for the artists to use, and could be a way for them to turn the streaming service into a hub for fan engagement and revenue. Continue Reading
RAIN Summit Indy is around the corner, and we booked some phone time with keynoter Darren Davis, president of Clear Channel Networks. Following are excerpts from a conversation with the irrepressibly enthusiastic Mr. Davis — about integrated advertising, iHeartRadio, and his commitment to Clear Channel. Continue Reading
Pono Music already has more than $6 million at its disposal from Kickstarter, but Neil Young and company are looking to raise more with a slightly different crowdfunding approach. This time they’re using Crowdfunder, which is an equity crowdfunding platform. Pono is looking to raise $2.5 million, and they’ve already received $1.43 million in commitments. Continue Reading
Google Play Music All Access announced another big international push, rolling out the service to nine more countries. Hot on the heels of an expansion in July, the streaming platform made further inroads into South and Latin America. With today’s launches, Google’s streaming product is now available in 43 countries. Continue Reading
iHeartRadio made good use of its mobile notification mechanism this morning, pinging registered users about a special Robin Williams takeover of the service’s “24/7 Comedy” channel. Legendary comedian and actor Williams died last night in his California home. Continue Reading
CD Baby has added free customizable online music players for its members. The company, which helps indie musicians to sell digital downloads and physical copies of their music, is positioning this new feature as a way for artists to make their work easily sharable. Continue Reading
Niche label Blue Music Group, which specializes in Scandinavian jazz and classical artists, announced yesterday that it has withdrawn its catalog from Spotify’s on-demand streaming service. The announcement, and its wording, make an interesting illustration of the tricky decision facing content owners during a time of industry disruption. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: RMLC supports consent decrees; Spotify’s first Canadian invites; Pandora ad exec talks targeting Continue Reading
Saavn has added 800,000 tracks from Warner Music and EMI to its offerings. The addition of this batch of Western music brings the Indian service’s catalog to almost 2 million. Saavn said in its press release that the deal makes it the only streaming platform in the country to offer songs from all of the big Western labels, with tunes from Sony and Universal already in its library. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Bop.fm’s tour info; Grooveshark’s new partnership; Twitch’s copyright debate. Continue Reading
RealNetworks included some insights into the money situation at Rhapsody in the SEC filing for its second-quarter financial results. For the period, Rhapsody posted revenue of about $42.4 million, up from about $35.7 million in the second quarter of 2013. Despite the healthy jump in revenue, the service is still operating at a loss. Continue Reading