Kids these days and their real-time, instant communication. Messaging and social apps have been seeing an increase in popularity, and several are experimenting with a musical angle. The latest is Rithm, a social music messaging service that officially launched its commercial listening platform today. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: 26 podcasts you should be listening to; NPR’s podcast strategy; BMG partners with Alibaba; Beatport launches an app; Tinder for music. Continue Reading
Universal Music Group has partnered with Mondia Media for the launch of a white-label mobile music service. According to the press release, Mondia Mix is a playlist-based listening platform for iOS and Android that’s aimed at mobile operators interested in providing entry-level streaming to their customers. Continue Reading
Mobile analytics company App Annie released its list of the top app publishers of 2014. Pandora landed at number 37 in the rankings. Many of the 52 companies focus on mobile games or social media, and some of those companies put out dozens or even hundreds of apps. Pandora, even with its narrow focus, was one of the few music-focused brands to secure a spot on the list. Continue Reading
After announcing 2 million subscribers back in July, Rhapsody and Napster have grown to 2.5 million paid subscribers worldwide. Those members listen to more than 5 million hours of music a week. A large part of the growth came from the company’s U.S. deal with T-Mobile, which contributed a 67% spike in unRadio subscriptions over the holiday season. Continue Reading
We’re used to sitting down at our computers to skim the news, or maybe even going old-school with a physical copy of the paper. Umano aims to give an audio angle to that experience. The company supplies narrations of written web content. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Billboard on global digital music projections; Spotify adds touch and swipe controls on mobile. Continue Reading
Following its big launch in India, Rdio announced a push into 24 new countries in the Caribbean, Central American, and Asia Pacific region. The new markets bring the total number of countries with Rdio availability to 85. Continue Reading
Several startups have sought to blend online music with a social sharing angle. This Is My Jam, Tapely, and Musx have experimented with how people share and discuss music with the latest technologies and streaming platforms. Another company has joined that social music space, but this one may have an edge thanks to securing support from labels. BOOMiO officially launched out of beta this week. Continue Reading
Deezer announced that it has bought Muve Music, a streaming service for phones only, from Cricket, a U.S. wireless carrier. Muve will be expanded to include Deezer’s song library and open up smart radio stations. Deezer will still be offering Muve to Cricket customers; the service will cost $6 for those who are signed up for a monthly cell phone plan of at least $35. Continue Reading
Bop.fm rolled out its first mobile app today for iOS devices. I’ve been following this company closely of late because its big claim to fame is syncing up multiple music services under one umbrella. For anyone who listens to lots of music styles across many platforms, the idea is certainly appealing. The new mobile program doesn’t have quite as many streaming options as the desktop version, but it still links up three popular ones: YouTube, Spotify Premium, and Soundcloud. Continue Reading
Spotify is opening up an option for third-party app developers to sell their creations on mobile app stores. The streaming platform announced that it has removed the distribution restrictions for programs made in the Spotify iOS SDK (software development kit) and Spotify Android SDK. As long as an app meets the Developer Terms of Use, the creators can pursue any avenues they choose for monetizing their Spotify-related programs. Continue Reading