The British Phonographic Industry is no stranger to the siege against YouTube, but it has launched another volley against the video platform. In its Music Market 2016 report, the BPI highlighted the revenue disparities delivered by subscription streaming and album sales, and by ad-supported freemium services. Continue Reading
The first quarter RAJAR data for 2016 revealed steady growth for radio listening in the UK, depending on the platform. All radio listening had an audience of 47.8 million adults, or 89.3% of the adult population. Digital radio audience has continued to grow slightly, from 56% in Q4 2015 to 57% in Q1 2016. Continue Reading
Berlin-based SoundCloud has launched two initiatives in U.K. and Ireland which bring those markets up to speed with the SoundCloud experience in the U.S. First, the SoundCloud Go subscription plan is now available to those audiences. Second, the free-listening service is now supported with advertising, some of which will be supplied by the Global-owned DAX automated platform. Continue Reading
The LG Stylus 2, the first smartphone with built-in DAB+ technology, has launched in the UK and Australia. It retails for £219.99 in the UK and A$499 in Australia. The digital radio smartphone debuted at Radiodays Europe. Continue Reading
The UK is adopting a new Collective Rights Management Directive beginning April 10. These new rules will offer increased oversight of PPL and PRS for Music, the two collection and rights management groups for the region. The changes should ensure that royalty payments from the organizations are fast and accurate.
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Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Mobile YouTubing skyrockets in India; Sainsbury bets big on vinyl; developing high-definition vinyl; Panoply exec talks shop. Continue Reading
The UK is adopting new rules for its collection societies aimed at streamlining the artistic rights process across Europe. The regulations, which take effect on April 10, build on an EU directive from 2014 that sought to make digital rights management simpler across borders. Continue Reading
The UK is getting a second national DAB digital radio multiplex network on Feb. 29. The network is coming courtesy of Sound Digital, a joint venture formed by Arqiva, Bauer Media, and UTV Media in 2014. Three of the channels will be using the DAB+ standard. Continue Reading
We covered the initial release of RAJAR data about fourth-quarter radio behavior in the UK, but the organization also tracks information about online-focused listening. The Measurement of Internet Delivered Audio Services (MIDAS) data released for autumn 2015 reveals additional insights into online radio and audio habits for UK listeners. Continue Reading
In a development reminiscent of B-movie science fiction, errors with the Global Positioning System network have created issues in digital radio broadcasts. Listeners in the UK experienced difficulties with receiving DAB signals due to the decommissioning of a GPS satellite on Jan. 26. Continue Reading
RAJAR data for the fourth quarter of 2015 revealed a fresh snapshot at radio listenership in the UK. The report found that the average listener spends 21 hours and four minutes with live radio per week. The reach for all radio was also strong, with 48.2 million adults (or 90% of the population over age 15) tuning in each week. More than half of the UK’s adult population is tuning in to digital formats. Continue Reading
Amazon’s Prime Music service has added more features for its UK listeners. The platform now offers hundreds of radio stations in that market, along with a song lyrics display from X-Ray Lyrics for tens of thousands of tracks. Continue Reading