Napster hired a new vice president of business development & operations for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Venesa Hoffman will be tasked with leading and executing the growth strategy, sales, marketing, and operations in that geographic region. Continue Reading
Acast has hired Chris Wistow as its new global head of audio product and partner sales. Wistow joins the podcasting company from AdsWizz, where he was the UK and Ireland Country Head. Continue Reading
SoundExchange subsidiary SXWorks announced the launch of a new service for music publishers and songwriters called the NOI Lookup. This searchable database contains all the address unknown Notice of Intention to Use filings made with the U.S. Copyright Office. These NOI filings are intended to inform a copyright owner of intent to distribute a musical composition. Continue Reading
Apple has introduced an analytics dashboard that offers insights into listener behavior within the tech company’s streaming music service. Apple Music for Artists is only available to a few thousand performers in the initial rollout. Feedback from these artists made result in tweaks or improvements to the system before its broad launch in spring. Continue Reading
James Cridland’s Future of Radio is a column by the Australia-based radio futurologist. THIS WEEK: How the UK listens; a sad passing; radio with pictures — and much more from the US, Europe, Australia, and elsewhere. Continue Reading
When Apple announced that it was delaying launch of its HomePod — specced out as a premium smart speaker with superior audio — it seemed like a clear fail to us. But Siri has started playing in the voice-control field, even without a speaker device. Continue Reading
Jake Shapiro, head of RadioPublic, the Boston-based podcast creation and distribution company, posted a note indicating that some upgrades have been introduced to the RadioPublic web player at radioplayer.com. A permanent player, easier sharing, and new scrubbing tools have modernized the experience. Continue Reading
Information about the Spanish recorded music industry came to light over the weekend, with an optimistic report from Promusicae, a member organization of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). There were three headline points for the Spanish recording industry in 2017. Continue Reading
A few major labels (Sony, Warner, Capitol and others) are reportedly suing Fit Radio, an app which streams music for workout routines, and provides cardio coaching. The app has been downloaded a million times from the Android store. The plaintiffs say its fitness music is being used without a proper license. Continue Reading
The Media Rating Council (MRC) has published its Final Version 1.0 of its Digital Audio Measurement Standards. The MRC is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to evolve valid and reliable criteria for audience measurement, and its accreditation is a valuable stamp of approval. Continue Reading
Spotify has introduced a new multimedia format that blends video and audio components. The feature is called Spotlight, and it can unite photos, video, or text when listening to podcasts, audiobooks, or news. We located Spotlight in Spotify’s Android app. Continue Reading
Mixcloud has furthered its relationship with W Hotels Worldwide, an arm of Marriott International. The companies are collaborating on special art and music events at six W Hotels around the world. Creative professionals have been invited to share their work for the series, dubbed Future Rising II: Wonderland. Continue Reading