A new report from SNL Kagan estimates mobile (smartphone and tablet) entertainment revenue for 2014, breaking out the gaming, video, and music categories. Total mobile entertainment revenue was $9.1-billion, and music accrued $1.8-billion. RAIN News spoke with John Fletcher, who authored the report. Continue Reading
Now that we’ve set off on a fresh new year, we’re getting some interesting and insightful perspectives on everything that transpired in the music world during 2014. Data scientists have had the time to collect final numbers and finish analyses. On Jan. 2, we got a preliminary look at the work of Nielsen SoundScan team, which showed a general trend of increased streaming and decreased sales. Today, we have the 2014 Nielsen Music U.S. Report to expand on those first finds. Continue Reading
ReelRadio has obtained pro bono legal assistance in its argument with the RIAA. ReelRadio streams vintage radio airchecks, some of which include music, and the RIAA says the site is out of complicance. The law firm of King & Spalding has agreed to partner with the ReelRadio and handle the case. Continue Reading
Warner Music Group posted its financial report for the year ending Sept. 30, and the results included some impressive figures related to streaming. The company’s revenue rose 5.2% to $3.02 billion, it’s highest number since 2009. That total was bolstered by an increase of $150 million in revenue from streaming music. Continue Reading
When the New York Times referred to music consumption as a “culture of free,” XAPPmedia CMO Bret Kinsella took to his keyboard to compose a sharp rebuttal. “Don’t fall for the narrative,” he cautions. Continue Reading
Australian telecommunication company Telstra announced that it is shuttering Bigpond Music, its online music download store. “The download-to-own music market has changed a lot,” a rep from Telstra said. “We believe the best way for us to continue to provide great music services to our customers is via a partner model.” Continue Reading
iHeartMedia has proposed reducing the royalty rate webcasters pay to artists and labels, cutting the existing rate set for terrestrial webcasters by 80 percent. The suggested royalty amount is less than half of Pandora’s suggested rate, which in turn is about half the rate suggested by SoundExchange, which represents music labels. iHeart’s argument is based on its negotiated deal with Warner Music Group, which provides lower royalty rates in exchange for greater exposure of Warner music. Continue Reading
Mark Mulligan of MIDiA Research wrote a blog post with his insights about the current price issues for streaming music. He highlighted the apparent either/or choice facing listeners – pick a totally free platform or pay $9.99 a month for a subscription – as a problem for the music industry to solve. Continue Reading
The inverse relationship of streaming music and music sales is well known: Streaming up, sales down. A similar symbiotic relationship exists between music concerts and music sales. But how do streaming and concerts interact? Is the relationship mutually beneficial? That’s what Spotify’s Director of Economics Will Page set out to discover in a new study. Continue Reading
Sponsored by AudioBoom
An eight-minute blast of news you need to know in streaming music and online audio. The weekly update of news you need to know in streaming music and online audio, from RAIN News. This week: Sirius XM, Rosanne Cash, audio on the brain, Grooveshark, Google, eMusic, Spotify, and the RIAA. Continue Reading
Sponsored by AudioBoom
An eight-minute blast of news you need to know in streaming music and online audio. This week: RIAA, Shazam, Apple, U2, copyright ruling, Beats Music, WBUR, Google Glass. Continue Reading
Billboard reported on weekly album sales today from Soundscan, noting benchmark low performance, and identifying long-term trends. They key bullet point is 3.97-million units sold in the latest reporting week — the first time album sales have dipped under 4-million. Continue Reading