RAIN Notes: Wednesday, January 17
— Good or Bad? (Oxford Road)
— Sorting Down Under (Triton Digital)
— Challenging Landscape (Amazon Audible)
“Definitive Guide” to Spotify’s updated royalty system pits labels vs. artists
Jeff Price, indefatigable advocate for independent musical artists, has produced an information/fact sheet which explains how Spotify royalty calculations and payments work. This effort comes after the streaming company made significant changes to its payment allocations. Carrying the weighty title “The Definitive Guide to Spotify’s Changes In Sound Recording Royalty Calculations — And Its Impact on Artists,” the 26-page PDF (available HERE) is part explainer, part statistical sheet, and part accuser. It’s deep, complex, illuminating, and freely available. Continue Reading
110M downloads “outperforming the market” — Audioboom’s Q4
London-based global podcast company Audioboom released a raft of Q4 metrics, as a 2023 trading update. Not a formal earnings report, the release offers financial statistics, commercial developments, and comments from CEO Stuart Last. Continue Reading
RAIN Notes: Friday, January 12
Podcast Hall of Fame inductees announced; live event set
Podfest Expo and Libsyn today unveiled the 2024 Podcast Hall of Fame Inductees. Launched in 2015, the Podcast Hall of Fame’s mission is to recognize and celebrate the distinguished group of individuals who have made a significant impact on the podcasting industry. Click for details. Continue Reading
YouTube (finally) enables RSS for podcasts; but no ads allowed. (Sort of) Questions abound.
YouTube has (belatedly) enabled RSS feed uploads of audio podcasts. This awaited feature is important because YouTube is commonly cited in listener surveys as a preferred platform for consuming podcasts. RSS is the foundational anatomy of podcast distribution which makes hooked-up shows appear in all podcast listening apps. The announcement is plainly good news, eagerly awaited by the creator class. There is also uncertainty about details. Continue Reading
RAIN Notes: Wednesday, January 10
— The State of Audio (Edison Research)
— AI voice agreement (SAG-AFTRA)
— New Partner (PRX)
Magellan AI adds attention metrics with Adelaide partnership
Podcast market intelligence and measurement company Magellan AI has partnered with Adelaide to bring attention metrics into Magellan’s podcast measurement suite. The arrangement will bring out show-level attention ratings by campaign, giving advertisers more insight into campaign effectiveness. The output of Adelaide’s technology is its so-called AU metric, a benchmarking score of listener engagement. Click to learn more. Continue Reading
Copyright Royalty Board starts Web VI, the next royalty setting process for streaming music
The U.S. Copyright Royalty Board (CRB), tasked with setting the royalty rates and terms for webcasting performances of records, has started the next every-five-years process. What comes next is two years of exhibits and legal argument from both sides — labels which own the music, and webcasters who play the music. Continue Reading
RAIN Notes: Tuesday, January 9
iHeartPodcast Awards returns with SXSW partnership
The iHeartPodcast Awards, formerly held independently in a Los Angeles performance venue, and simulcast online, will return on March 11 at the Fairmont Hotel in Austin. The event is revived via a partnership with the SXSW Conference and Festivals. Details. Continue Reading
James Cridland’s International Radio Trends: How successful have HD Radio’s additional channels been?
by James Cridland
In his latest guest column, James Cridland reviews and analyzes HD Radio, comparing it to the UK’s DAB digital radio solution. HD Radio does not fare well in the comparison, for reasons ranging from low usage to poor user experience. “Now that HD Radio is more than 21 years old, it might be interesting to know how much listening there is to these HD2/HD3 stations. And it turns out… not much.” And James analyzes why that is. A must read for anyone interested in what went wrong with HD Radio adoption in the U.S., and a cross-continental comparison. Continue Reading