RAIN Hotspots: Reader favorites for May 4-8
This was an eventful week, and RAIN News readers told us, through their article choices, what the most important topics were. Call it RAIN News “Share of Eye.” Continue Reading
SoundCloud
SoundCloud makes deal with NMPA, but loses some Sony artists
SoundCloud had two major events in its relationship development with labels and publishers. The online audio platform successfully inked a deal with the National Music Publishers’ Association. This arrangement allows independent publishers and composers to monetize content on the service… Continue Reading
SoundCloud unleashes podcast hosting for everyone, with aggressive pricing
SoundCloud has taken its podcasting service out of beta and made it live for all users. The new podcast hosting additions include RSS feed distribution, embeddable podcast players, integration with social networks, and timed comments. Continue Reading
SoundCloud teams up with the company behind YouTube’s Content ID
SoundCloud has entered into a partnership with content identification service Zefr. The deal appears focused on monitoring what tracks get played and when. Although neither SoundCloud nor Zefr have disclosed much detail about the nature of their new partnership, it’s likely a step in SoundCloud’s push into monetizing its platform. Continue Reading
adStream: Jaguar’s native presence in SoundCloud
This week SoundCloud marked a milestone in its relatively new advertising program with an announcement that it has paid out $1-million in ad revenues since the program launched in August. It’s a good moment to take a look at one launch advertiser, Jaguar, in the service. Continue Reading
SoundCloud has paid out more than $1 million in ad revenue
SoundCloud shared some insights about its program to help creators monetize their tracks. The On SoundCloud campaign has more than 100 people signed up as Premier Partners. Since the program launched in August, it has paid out more than $1 million in ad revenue to labels, audio partners, and artists. Continue Reading
Quick Hits: Stealing from radio; SoundCloud infographic; SXSW hackathon
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: what streaming should borrow from radio; SoundCloud audience infographic; SXSW hosts a hackathon. Continue Reading
Streamus: A Google Chrome extension that undermines Google’s streaming business
A Google Chrome browser extension called Streamus is lit up with buzz after the developer posted a promotional status report on Reddit. Streamuis makes YouTube music navigation easier and more lightweight. At the same time, the extension separates the user from YouTube, and provides some of the value that YouTube’s new Music Key subscription service promotes. Continue Reading
adStream: Skippable audio ads
We had heard about SoundCloud’s skippable audio ads, and were on the prowl to see one in action. We struck gold in the new Gimlet Media site. There, we found the unique ad technology used by SoundCloud to present a 30-second pre-roll audio ad. Continue Reading
SoundCloud enhances music collection with new feature
SoundCloud introduced a new feature which makes it easier for account-holders to collect and organize music. Aptly, it is called Collections. It does not add new functionality, but displays a user’s tagged music differently. Highly recommended for long-time SoundCloud music collectors. Continue Reading
SoundCloud refreshes iOS app, adds playlisting
Soundcloud joins the year-end rush of app updates with an adjustment to its IOS app (iPhone only; iPad promised for next year). Playlisting has been added. Playlisting has been a sorely missing feature on the iOS side since June, when the current ultra-simple app was launched. Continue Reading
Social music app Musx raises half a million in seed funding
An up-and-coming streaming service named Musx announced seed funding of $500,000, according to VentureBeat. It’s an iOS app designed for social sharing of music. Members can post songs from YouTube or SoundCloud. As has become common in these mobile apps, users can create their own playlists. Musx adds a collaborative angle, so friends can build playlists together. Continue Reading