Rdio’s closure meant some scrambling for an unusual partner. The now-shuttered streaming service was the music partner for Tesla’s Model S series of electric cars. Rdio has now been replaced by Spotify for the vehicles in Europe, Australia, and Hong Kong. Current Tesla owners in those markets will see Spotify replacing Rdio through an over-the-air software update. Continue Reading
While albums fade as commercial products, and radio is challenged by streaming audio, is there a new power product that drives listens and accelerates hit-making? U.K.-based consultant and founder of New Slang Media, Chris Price, has emerged as a specialist in identifying the power of playlists, and quantifying their influence. Listomania is his new research study. Continue Reading
Sponsored by AudioBoom
The weekly update of the streaming audio industry, from RAIN News. THIS WEEK: The U.S. Copyright Royalty Board delivers new webcaster royalty rates for payments to record labels. Also, Vivendi takes a majority stake in Radionomy’s online radio platform. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: The most-covered Christmas songs; where are Spotify’s Shows?; Vox talks podcasting; a new feel for classic rock radio; the brain drain at the BBC. Continue Reading
Two developments came from the Spotify camp today. First, the company added a new mobile feature called Party. Second, the streaming service has caught Star Wars fever, and created a standalone site aimed at identifying a listener’s musical match from the film saga’s cast. Continue Reading
Spotify has hired a music executive away from BBC. George Ergatoudis is joining the streaming company as its new head of content programming for the UK. Continue Reading
With the closure of Rdio, it makes sense that the streaming platform’s customers would want to find ways to retain their carefully curated profiles and playlists. Both Rdio and Spotify have released tools to do just that. Continue Reading
The announcement of Rdio’s bankruptcy caused a stir for users of the service, curious how to preserve their listening history and playlists. As is often the case in this situation, an ambitious denizen of the Internet has emerged with a new solution. Continue Reading
Sponsored by AudioBoom
The weekly update of the streaming audio industry, from RAIN News. THIS WEEK: CRB royalty rates due any day; Triton Digital webcast metrics; Rhapsody grows its audience; WNYC pokes Facebook with audio; Spotify faces a decision, more. Continue Reading
We love when Spotify finds cool ways to share data, and the end of the year is often when the streaming service shines. It delivered a Year In Music round-up that details any individual’s music choices from the last 12 months in a beautifully designed package. Continue Reading
In a big potential strategy shift, Spotify is allegedly open to some artists temporarily restricting their music to its paid tier. Unnamed sources told The Wall Street Journal that Spotify will consider windowing content based on whether a listener pays for the service. An insider said Spotify would be trying this strategy as a test first to assess the impact it might have on usage and subscription membership. Continue Reading
Another major album release, another segmented digital launch. Coldplay dropped a new album on Friday but have restricted its online availability to paid-only music services. That means A Head Full of Dreams can be heard on the likes of Apple Music and Amazon Prime Music, but not on Spotify. At least, not yet. Continue Reading