German music association BVMI released its year-end report on the domestic industry. Germany’s music business grew 2.4% in 2016, a fourth year of upward progress. The key takeaway for last year was that streaming is holding a steady share in this country that has long favored physical formats. Continue Reading
UK music licensing groups PRS for Music and PPL have launched a joint license for the UK’s non-profit radio stations. The joint effort took effect on Jan. 1, 2017. Continue Reading
As power is transferred in Washington this week, the leading coalition of artists and labels lobbying against terrestrial radio’s exemption from music royalties is bringing its argument to the fore. In an open letter to the new 115th Congress, musicFIRST lays out its argument against the Local Radio Freedom Act, a non-binding resolution supported by hundreds of House and Senate members. The letter contains factual flaws. Open-market solutions establish a precedent that doesn’t involve lawmakers. Continue Reading
Slate-owned podcast network Panoply notified us of a few developments related to its Megaphone podcast content management platform. New high-profile publishers have joined Megaphone, and a new product called Megalink offers a user-friendly subscription process that also gives producers more intelligence about listeners. Continue Reading
For over 15 years, RAIN Summits have been the preeminent knowledge and networking events for the convergence of radio, digital audio, and online listening. In 2017, RAIN sharpens its conference mission to focus on the continual conversation between buyers and sellers of online audio advertising. Continue Reading
Tidal appears to be giving listeners an unusual new tool for adjusting their experience on the mobile app. “You can now edit the length and tempo of a track and save it to a playlist with the new Track Edit feature,” the update notes say. Continue Reading
Apple Music has made an addition to its live radio offerings. CBS Sports Radio will join the handful of live stations available only to paid Apple Music subscribers. Continue Reading
Pandora has been re-thinking its licensing, inking direct deals with labels and publishers over the past two years. Despite those changes to the audio company’s licensing structures, SoundExchange will still be managing Pandora’s payouts to artists from the free tier. Continue Reading
Podtrac has posted its ranking of the top podcast programs from December 2016. The list includes several familiar titles, with This American Life, RadioLab, TED Radio Hour, Freakonomics Radio, and Stuff You Should Know filling out the top five. Continue Reading
7digital shared its year-end update reviewing some highlights of the full year and final quarter of 2016. CEO Simon Cole projected a strong 2017 for the B2B music company’s balance sheets. Continue Reading
Triton Digital announced two new partnerships this week. First, Finnish company Zemeho has joined its a2x programmatic advertising exchange. The second deal is NRG Media using Triton’s Audience Management Platform. Continue Reading
Deezer has revealed the plans for a new program called Deezer Next, which will identify and promote emerging musical talents. The streaming service will collaborate with the artists and their labels and managers to raise the profile of the selected performers through playlisting, editorial, and marketing support. Continue Reading