Multiple music and audio platforms are making aggressive starts to 2018. Spotify and Apple Music have recently shared plans to expand their user bases. Although the end goal of growth is similar for each of the platforms, their exact circumstances are quite distinct. Continue Reading
Spotify has changed how it works with several third-party speakers and receivers, meaning some customers may be experiencing a break in service. Spotify Connect is no longer integrated in the same way with some speakers and audio products from Bang & Olufsen, Denon, Dynaudio, Logitech, Marantz, NAD, Onkyo, Philips, Pioneer, Teufel, and Yamaha. Continue Reading
Spotify is known for its vast stores of metadata, but that information is usually invisible for listeners. Arielle Vaniderstine, a developer advocate engineer at Spotify, has made a new tool available called Nelson that puts the streaming service’s curation controls in your hands. Continue Reading
Much of Apple’s subscriber increase is reportedly happening in the U.S. Unnamed sources told WSJ that Apple is posting 5% monthly subscriber growth in the United States, compared with 2% growth for Spotify. That has led many other publications to see this as a sign that Apple could overtake Spotify as the biggest subscription streaming service in one of the major markets, but that projection requires some caveats. Continue Reading
Spotify has added credits for songwriters and producers to the tracks on its platform. Right-clicking on a song will reveal an option for “Show Credits,” which opens a pop-up that lists the names of the performer, the writers, and the producers. Spotify said in a blog post announcing the development that it will also provide the source of the credits. Continue Reading
Spotify has launched a new app designed specifically for listening to curated playlists. Stations, now available on Android mobile devices, appears to offer a lean-back listening experience. The app is free to download and use, no Spotify Premium subscription is required. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Pandora exec on voice ads. Why Latin music is having a moment. Playlists for (adoptable) puppies. 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
In the November report of Triton Digital’s Webcast Metrics Top 20 Ranker, overall stream listening moved upward 3% for the whole group compared to October. Percentage gains for the month were led by Pandora and AccuRadio. Continue Reading
Spotify has introduced a new multimedia format that blends video and audio components. The feature is called Spotlight, and it can unite photos, video, or text when listening to podcasts, audiobooks, or news. We located Spotlight in Spotify’s Android app. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Podcasts are now 25% at Slate. YouTube tightens access to ad program. Programmatic and podcasts at Spotify. Continue Reading
Spotify announced that it has surpassed 70 million subscribers. The news came in a tweet from the streaming company on Thursday afternoon. That’s an exciting milestone with a direct listing in the works, but the departure of Chief Content Officer Stefan Blom could give investors pause. Continue Reading