Internet Radio Rewind podcast #009: Swell Radio; Vevo; Pandora; NPR; Sirius; Radionomy

This weekly podcast is a quick and concise catch-up of must-know news in streaming music and online audio

This week: Swell Music shutters … Vevo looks for a buyer … Pandora releases earnings … NPR reinvents radio, again … Sirius and Radionomy have news.
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BMI partners with iBiquity for artist spotlight program

Music rights organization BMI has entered a partnership with iBiquity, the developer of HD Radio. The two parties will launch a new program called the HD Radio Artist Spotlight, which is intended to help promote new artists and support established ones on tour. The spotlight’s launch will focus on five of BMI’s country music acts. Continue Reading →

Warner exec departs for Soundcloud, looks to continue driving music’s digital transition

After 17 years at Warner Music Group, Stephen Bryan has been appointed the new senior vice president of business development and strategy for SoundCloud. “I’ve always felt a deep passion to navigate this incredible transition to digital platforms,” he said. “I think that change will accelerate in the near future, and a company like SoundCloud enables me to continue that.” He enters a company undergoing growth, and growing pains. Continue Reading →

Pureplay of the Day: Smooth Jazz Chicago

On April 30, 2012, Rick O’Dell was fed up. WLFM in Chicago switched away from the Smooth Jazz format (to Alt Rock), leaving the city’s terrestrial listeners without a station for that shiny genre. It had happened before, in 2009, when Clear Channel’s WNUA abandoned Smooth Jazz for Spanish-language programming. O’Dell saw an opportunity, and started a localized Smooth Jazz Internet-only station. Continue Reading →

Rhapsody hits 2 million subscribers, announces international expansion

Rhapsody announced a major milestone this morning, reporting that it has surpassed 2 million paid subscribers across its music services. Considering the company was just touting 1.7 million subscribers in April, it’s making steady progress in attracting new listeners. In related news, Rhapsody expanded its available offerings in several international markets through its Napster division. Continue Reading →

New iPhone app Next offers music discovery inspired by online dating

Review by Anna Washenko

Dating app Tinder created a place where members could forge new personal connections based on snap judgements of attraction. Now, two of the app’s veterans have launched a new project that applies the same idea and mechanics to music. Tinder co-founder Christopher Gulczynski and former design vice president Sarah Nick are the brains behind Next, which bills itself as a place for social music discovery. Continue Reading →