Pandora stock rises on analyst thumbs-up; Pandora Premium said to be on “maintenance”

Pandora stock is benefitting today from two encouraging pieces of Wall Street news. As of this post, P stock is up three percent, to its highest level of July. One investor’s note to clients reveals how Pandora is re-allocating resources to favor the radio service, putting Pandora Premium in maintenance mode. Continue Reading

Spotify reportedly close to Warner licensing deal

Spotify has reportedly made progress toward securing a licensing deal with Warner Music Group. Reuters cited four unnamed sources in its exclusive report that the streaming company was moving closer to an agreement with the third major label. The specifics of this alleged arrangement are still being hammered out, but the sources told Reuters that the parties had already agreed to Spotify paying a smaller share of revenue to Warner in exchange for the label’s artists to window their work to paid subscribers for a period. Continue Reading

Congress introduces legislation for pre-1972 royalties; music industry parties react

Congress is preparing to address the topic of royalties for pre-1972 recordings, a move that sparked positive response from several music industry players. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) introduced the CLASSICS Act to establish royalty payments for the creators of music recorded prior to the advent of federal copyright laws in 1972. Representatives from SoundExchange, the RIAA, and Pandora have all reacted favorably toward this proposal. Continue Reading