Pandora announced that Chris Phillips will join the company as chief product officer. In the new role, Phillips will focus on product management, design, and analysis, in addition to defining and leading the overall product strategy for the online radio business. Continue Reading
In a revealing document submitted to the U.S. Copyright Royalty Board (CRB), Pandora argues for lowered music licensing rates in the 2016-2020 statutory royalty period. The proposed rate range is about half the amount suggested by SoundExchange in its submission to the CRB. The key argument discloses aspects of Pandora’s private music licensing agreement with Merlin, a coalition of 20,000 music labels. Continue Reading
Pandora’s Q3 earnings call on Thursday marked an anniversary of the one-year directorship of CEO Brian McAndrews. McAndrews told a story of record-breaking financial results, and slowing audience growth. Wall Street punished the company severely in after-hours trading following the late-afternoon call, and in today’s formal session. Continue Reading
Pandora has launched a new online service that delivers audience analytics to musicians and their managers. Called Pandora AMP, the “Artist Marketing Program” includes data pulled from the many billions of hours people spend listening to the online radio platform. Any artists currently playing on Pandora can sign up for the free service at the AMP website. This initiative marks the first time pandora has turned its data firehose toward musicians. Continue Reading
Buying media is easy. Getting people to watch commercials is not. That’s the premise behind Pandora’s new Sponsored Listening program. The new initiative just launched with two brand partners, Fox and Sony PlayStation. Continue Reading
Pandora has appointed Steve Bené as its new general counsel. Bené joins the online radio service from Electronic Arts, where he held the same position and worked on negotiations with music and movie studios. In his role at Pandora, Bené will be a member of the company’s executive leadership team and will oversee all legal operations. Continue Reading
Pandora announced that it has 255,000 registered users in New Zealand. The New Zealand Times reported on the growth of the online radio service, which launched in the region, along with Australia, in December 2012. About half of the registered users log into the service during any 30-day period. Continue Reading
Pandora has been growing its international audience since launching in Australia and New Zealand. That base of listeners could grow even more thanks to a partnership in the region with Ford Australia that will put the radio app in up to 60% of all new cars in 2015, according to The Music Network. Continue Reading
The Turtles have filed a class-action suit against Pandora, claiming $25 million in damages for copyright infringement. The New York Times reported that pre-1972 songs only account for about 5% of the music played on Pandora. A representative from the online radio company said that the platform was confident in its actions, noting that Pandora pays separate songwriting royalties on all its music, including those tunes from before the pivotal dates. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Classic rock’s high prices and good exposure from ads; Pandora CFO on repairing licensing relationships; Wonder.fm offers SoundCloud hit discovery. Continue Reading
Data from App Annie revealed that music services are among the top performers for in-app purchases in August. The analytics firm found that Spotify, Pandora, and Apple’s music apps were among the leaders for in-app revenue. All three ranked in the top 10 revenue generators for non-game apps. Continue Reading
A California judge has delivered a result in the Turtles vs. Sirius XM class action case, in which the oldies band sought damages for Sirius XM’s failure to pay royalties for use of pre-1972 music. The court issued a summary judgment in favor of the artists, striking a blow to Sirius XM and sending tectonic shock waves across the streaming music landscape. Although the ruling is clear, its impact is not. The case centers on discrepancies between state and federal music-licensing laws, and lack of clear regulation in both realms. Continue Reading