Registered users comprise everyone who has created a log-in to Pandora’s service, which is required to create a personalized station and hear something. So, presumably, that 250-million number includes anyone who has kicked the tires even just once. About 30% of signups turn into active users. Continue Reading
Should broadcast radio be required to pay royalties to labels and recording artists for use of their records? There are arguments on both sides, and the stalemate reinforces inertia. But the debate is heating up, gaining publicity, and creating awareness of an issue that many people don’t know about. Continue Reading
The five most-read articles of last week. Is the streaming-music business model fundamentally broken? (This was also our most-linked article.) iTunes Radio and Pandora: who is slaying whom? Lew Dickey (CEO, Cumulus) speaks out about streaming. Shazam starts a record label. More. Continue Reading
Yesterday afternoon, Reuters spotted a Spotify job listing containing language which implied that the music subscription company was preparing to go public with an initial public offering (IPO). The buzz building around this speculation today is an extension of past predictions from many quarters. Continue Reading
“The whole music subscription sector is intrinsically unprofitable.” That is the stark conclusion of a 150-page financial research report released by British company Generator Research. Unsustainably high cost of operation will prevent profitability, according to the report. Continue Reading
Hundreds of readers voted in the inaugural RAIN Poll. We asked: “Pandora is the leading ‘Internet radio’ service. Is Pandora radio?” Click through for results, and comments. One thing is certain: the word “radio” has been changed. Continue Reading
RAIN Hotspots: The five most-read articles of the week. Pandora vs. ASCAP trial; how millennials listen; the inaugural RAIN Poll; spotify launches a radio-like hosted program; Pandora accepts open music submissions. Continue Reading
Research group NPD Group released a small set of survey data revealing what a sample group of smartphone users listen to on their phones. In a sample of 328 users, 71% reported listening to Pandora in the past week, and 15% listened to iTunes Radio … but, the deck is stacked. Continue Reading
Internet listening remained essentially flat in December over November, according to data released by Triton Digital in its Webcast Metrics Top 20 Ranker. Top-line listening growth barely nudged total listening into new-high territory. Click through for analysis and charts. Continue Reading
Next week Pandora will reportedly add a new audience segment to its targeted ad products: political preference. The market-leading Internet radio service uses zip codes from user registrations, combined with historical voting data and musical choices. Continue Reading
Leading Internet radio platform Pandora seeks to reinvent radio and replace it. The brand is often referred to as Pandora Radio, implying that Pandora is the same as radio … but different. Is Pandora radio? Click through to vote your answer. Continue Reading
According to a first-hand document provided by a RAIN source, federal judge Denise Cote seemed to agree with Pandora’s argument that it be treated as “radio” in closing arguments of a royalty case. Pandora could pay less to publishers as a result. Details. Continue Reading