We noticed the new Hunger Games soundtrack album as a streaming playlist in iTunes Radio, which supported our repeated observation that “album release” no longer has much meaning. In the years when radio was the only mass-market music discovery venue,… Continue Reading
Not to trivialize business issues for musicians, but the “Spotify debate” rages on which increasing repetition. Some of the publicized outbursts against Spotify result from musicians being asked about it by journalists. The latest high-profile musician to take a club… Continue Reading
Streaming music service Songza updated its personalization features in a new iOS app which dropped into the Apple app store this week. Users can now see a list of their thumbs-up song votes, and play them as a playlist. That… Continue Reading
Long rumored and finally accomplished: Google dropped its tortuously-named Google Play Music All Access app into the iOS store today, extending its subscription service to Apple mobile-device users. (The launch was announced by Google here.) Pointless, you say, because Apple… Continue Reading
SoundCloud, the audio upload site sometimes positioned as the audio version of YouTube, turns five years old this week. The company blog celebrates the milestone, and mentions a few eye-opening usage statistics. Upload traffic is intense, with an average 12… Continue Reading
Music service Slacker today announced a partnership with Time Warner Cable in which Slacker will be bundled into TWC subscriptions, presumably both via TV and Internet screens. Slacker pursues a vigorous distribution strategy, pairing with media networks (ABC, ESPN), telecom… Continue Reading
If you visit the Deezer website (www.deezer.com) on a computer in the U.S., you see this notice: “Deezer’s music services are not yet available in your country.” That will reportedly change soon, as Digital Music News posts that the Paris-based… Continue Reading
Nielsen released its annual Music 360 survey report this week. Two of the headline points are that radio is the dominant music-discovery medium, and that teens listen to music in YouTube more than any other source. RAIN spoke to David… Continue Reading
Local media consultancy BIA/Kelsey released a state-of-the-industry report titled “Local Radio Stations Profiles and Trends for 2014 and Beyond.” The study identifies an 11.5% share of local media revenue going to AM/FM. Vice President and Chief Economist Mark Fratrik, who… Continue Reading
Publicly traded Internet radio service Pandora will report 3rd-quarter earnings next Thursday, November 21. But the company and its stock are benefiting from analyst anticipation of quarterly results. Investment house Needham & Company raised its target stock price for P… Continue Reading
One of the most professionally produced, and cleanly presented, indie pureplays, The Jazz Groove (www.thejazzgroove.com) crafts a listening experience of understated, elegant acoustic jazz. The station’s motto is lifted from a Miles Davis quote: “You don’t have to play a lot… Continue Reading
Google’s wearable Glass product, which clamps onto the user’s face like glasses and provides on-command field-of-vision computing, is reportedly stepping into music in a few ways. First, predictably, Glass will interact with the Google Play Music service, enabling song, album,… Continue Reading