Registration for the June 21 RAIN Podcast Business Summit opens today, as tickets for the milestone conference go on sale at the Early Pricing level for a limited time. Between now and May 16 attendees may register to be part of the event at New York’s AXA Event & Production Center for $299. Continue Reading
Varick Media sent an announcement today that it has expanded its relationship with Triton Digital, using Triton’s a2x programmatic marketplace in Canada. Continue Reading
Otto Radio announced the launch of a new feature dubbed Themed Stations. The company, a personalized streaming audio service, now allows users to create stations centered around more than 500,000 topics or themes. We gave the newe feature a test drive. Continue Reading
Tencent Music Entertainment Group is working on an initial public offering that could see the business valued at $10 billion, according to the China Money Network. The company is part of Chinese conglomerate Tencent. Continue Reading
SoundCloud has announced a new promotion that seems aimed at encouraging new listeners to test out its paid service. The audio platform is offering three months of access to SoundCloud Go+ for just $1. The plan normally costs $9.99 a month. Continue Reading
Global streaming revenue was up 60% in 2016, according to the International Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI) annual report. Streaming revenue nudged the industry upward as a whole. Within that good news, a centerpiece of the report is an analysis of the “value gap,” emblemized by YouTube. Continue Reading
The Webby Award season concluded last week. Here are the winners in the “Podcasts & Digital Audio” group, across 15 categories. Though some are well-known, and most are from leading networks, the winners (official and People’s Voice) make a good discovery list. Continue Reading
Guest columnist Mark Ramsey weighs in on a hot debate in podcasting: How long is the best podcast length? Continue Reading
SoundExchange, which collects and distributes label royalties from streaming music, released its Q1 2017 report this morning, citing growth statistics compared to Q1 2016. It’s a growth story of participating musicians, even as Pandora — the largest single contributor to label royalties from webcasting — reduced its involvement in this particular payment system. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: An Apple Music interview on its video future; ongoing FM shutdown in Norway; mobile leading digital ad spend. Continue Reading
RAIN News received a note from Roger King, Producer and Director of I Am What I Play, a documentary about radio DJs. The film was completed in July, 2014, has been playing in the documentary circuit, and is available to stream or download on Vimeo starting today. Continue Reading
Australia’s SBS Radio announced a campaign centered around the Eurovision music talent competition. SBS Eurovision Radio will be a round-the-clock station on digital radio, online, and mobile that features hits from the international competition. It will also have a live simulcast of the semifinal and grand final performances next week. Continue Reading