Valence Media, the parent company for Billboard, has acquired Nielsen Music. This means the chart company and the source of its data will be united under one roof. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Continue Reading
Billboard will update its charts to reflect the ongoing importance of video in the music world. The company announced that it will include video and audio data from YouTube on its Billboard 200 and genre-specific album charts starting January 3. Continue Reading
Billboard released its annual list of digital power players, a collection of the business leaders who are driving segments such as streaming and radio. Both industries had notable figures from businesses around the world, as well as from leading brands. Continue Reading
Billboard announced an expansion to its chart offerings. The company is launching new charts for Top Songwriters and for Top Producers. These rankings will be based on weekly activity from several of Billboard’s “hot” charts, with placements based on points accumulated for each attributed song appearing on those other charts. Continue Reading
Billboard has released its annual Power 100 list, ranking some of the music industry’s most influential leaders. The major labels took several high-ranking spots, but the impact of streaming made its presence known on this chart. Continue Reading
Billboard has made an adjustment to the streaming services that will count toward its chart calculations. Streams logged by iHeartRadio and Pandora subscribers will be included in chart performance beginning July 14. Continue Reading
Billboard is adjusting how it calculates streaming equivalents for two of its charts, as was previously discussed last fall. The new equations will give greater weight to streams from paid subscription on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard 200 charts. Continue Reading
Billboard has released its Power 100 list for 2018, a ranking of the most influential leaders in the music business. The list includes several executives from streaming services alongside the stalwarts from major labels, talent management, and concert promotion. Continue Reading
Billboard announced that will adjust how it weights streaming equivalents for its charts. Under the current system, Billboard only distinguishes between streams from on-demand platforms and streams from programmed services, with more weight given to the on-demand plays. Beginning in 2018, Billboard will begin weighting paid streams more heavily than free listening streams. Continue Reading
Billboard announced a revamp of its Emerging Artists chart. The new chart will be a break-out of the overall Billboard Artist 100 chart and replaces the weekly Billboard + Twitter Emerging Artists chart that debuted in 2014. The Emerging Artists will be identified by the same formula behind several other Billboard charts, with a combination of album and track sales, radio airplay, streaming, and social media buzz. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Where are the women? Updated Spotify desktop app display. New music…Thursdays? Continue Reading
The New York Times has published a data visualization comparing the popularity of top artists across the U.S. The publication used a cross-section of Billboard’s Top 100 artists and YouTube viewing data to create heat maps of where those performers are listened to the most (and the least). The artist maps offer insight into where and how some newer big acts got their surge to the top, who is keeping the familiar names atop the charts, and which regions have the most die-hard fan support for local heroes. And yes, there are some interesting surprises. Continue Reading