Amazon Prime Music announced that it has licensed Universal’s catalog for listeners in the UK and U.S. Music by Universal artists will be added to Prime’s curated playlists. The deal covers many top 40 and popular artists, as well as a selection of jazz and classical albums. Continue Reading
After less than a year, Samsung is shuttering its Milk Video service. The company hasn’t given details about why the service closed or where it’s media strategy will go next. While this news doesn’t seem to have an immediate impact on the streaming music platform run by Samsung, Milk Music is also part of the division that also housed Milk Video. Continue Reading
We’ve seen genres outside the big pop and rock umbrella seek out creative ways to carve their own niches in the online music business. The latest one to appear is Dart Music, a digital distributor that caters exclusively to classical music. The services at Dart are very comparable to what you’d see at TuneCore or CD Baby, but all focused on the specific needs and wants of classical artists and composers. Continue Reading
YouTube Music Key entered its beta almost a year ago, and since then, we’ve been waiting and seeking any minor hint about when and how that launch will happen. According to reports from Re/code, the latest sign seems to point to the date being later this fall. Continue Reading
Budget grocery chain Aldi announced that it is launching a streaming music service that will only be available in its home market of Germany. It’s build on Napster’s full streaming catalog and has no freemium option. Continue Reading
7digital reported its financial results for the first half of 2015, which it dubbed one of the first reflections “on which the success of the new company created from the merger of UBC Media and 7digital can be observed.” CEO Simon Cole also reflected on the state of the digital music industry. Lastly, 7digital has added support for Google Cast. Continue Reading
James Cridland Weekly Links is a column by the U.K.’s radio futurologist. THIS WEEK: Reviews of Radio X; ad-blockers no clear victory for radio; several events and notes from Australia; and much more. Continue Reading
This week we are revealing finalists in the Sixth Annual RAIN Internet Radio Awards. Today we are pleased to announce the advancing finalists in the “Best Overall Online Radio Service” category. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Saavn adds new investor; the Internet as popularity echo chamber; a profile of the Russian music biz. Continue Reading
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The weekly update of the streaming audio industry, from RAIN News. THIS WEEK: Crunching RIAA numbers; the value of ad-supported listening; streaming milestone; the return of Earbits; Deezer’s announcement. Continue Reading
Vevo conducted new research about the listening habits of millennials, finding that the age group spends an average of 25 hours a week streaming music. The platform also asked about preferences for both streaming services and music genres. Continue Reading
XAPPmedia published a special new report about Apple as a supplement to its usual quarterly ad load data. This focused study, which is the first from XAPPmedia to address a service by name, covers all of 2015 through August. Apple’s ad-supported streaming music property at the start of the year was iTunes Radio, which was then folded into Apple Music when it launched on June 30. Continue Reading