Is the world returning to normal life? There are many answers to that question. One set of answers can be derived from information released by Apple. The company has released a fascinating dataset of mobility information, covering the period from January 13 to June 8. The info comes from Apple Maps, and carries three trendlines: Driving, Walking, and Transit. Continue Reading
Apple has reported its financial results for the three months ending March 28. The performance overall showed slowing growth, although many of its important metrics still trended upwards. Continue Reading
Voicebot.ai has released its latest report on U.S. smart speaker adoption. According to its most recent surveys, the U.S. smart speaker installed base has grown 32% to 87.7 million adults. Continue Reading
Apple is rolling out its Services platform to 20 new markets. The move brings Apple Podcasts, the App Store, and more to a vast new international audience. Apple Music is going even bigger, launching in 52 more additional countries. Continue Reading
Apple Podcasts is now home to 1 million shows. My Podcast Reviews reported on the count, which came from its Podcast Industry Statistics measurement system. Just under half of those million podcasts appear to be active. Continue Reading
Google Podcasts has made its debut on iOS. Anyone with a Google account can make use of the podcast app. The service recently got a new look for Android, and that version is being rolled out to web and iOS platforms too. Continue Reading
Apple has reportedly signed new licensing agreements for its streaming service. Financial Times reported that the company secured multi-year deals with the three majors. Continue Reading
Apple has hired Jeff Bronikowski as its new global head of strategic music intiatives. He joins from Warner Music Group, where he was SVP of global business development and head of new technology and innovation. Continue Reading
One of the more recent streaming service lawsuits is expanding its reach. In November, Sosa Entertainment and Pro Music Rights filed a suit against Spotify. Pro Music Rights has filed additional lawsuits against ten more streaming services. Continue Reading
Rumors have been swirling for some time that Apple might turn to commissioning original podcasts. Most of the speculation hinted that exclusive titles would further entice listeners to the Apple Podcasts platform, but the latest insider information indicates a secondary goal for any original programming. Continue Reading
James Cridland’s Podnews apparently inspired podcast analytics and attribution company Chartable to crunch some numbers defining the share of podcasting distribution among leaders in that space. The question derives from Spotify’s rapid growth in this field. Apple is still #1, but Spotify’s influence in this field is growing impressively. Continue Reading
With podcasts on track to be commanding a cool billion dollars in ad revenue, the fight to be the leading listening platform will only be getting more intense. This year kicked off with multiple reports from difference sources with their own datasets about which service is the biggest. James Cridland of Podnews gave his take on how to reconcile the different assessments Continue Reading