PRS for Music has extended its multi-territory licensing deal with YouTube. The agreement includes mechanical rights for works represented by the UK copyright agency’s MCPS and IMPEL branches. Continue Reading
With its launch of Looped, CBS’s Radio.com audio portal moves into the video space. The product is bolted into Radio.com, and is powered by Vadio, a company which provides audio-ti-video synchronization to radio stations and whose tagline is “Radio Worth Watching.” Continue Reading
It has been a very busy year for Alphabet (née Google). Not only has the company undergone a major reorganization and rebranding, but its various entertainment properties have been putting down roots, entrenching themselves for the long journey to becoming the top dogs. The latest development comes from YouTube, which The Wall Street Journal (paywall) reports is working on building up its video offerings to include licensed movies and TV shows. Continue Reading
The end-of-the-year roundups continue apace, this time with Adweek’s Hot List detailing the top 24 digital brands, startups, and games from 2015. The list included nods for the ‘hottest music app,’ and if you can remember back to last year’s choices, you’ll be seeing very familiar names. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: YouTube aiding in some fair use cases; FCC commissioner voices support for FM chip activation; Dash Radio’s multichannel technology. Continue Reading
YouTube has launched its new standalone music app. YouTube Music, which was once just a section of the general YouTube service, is now available as a free download on both the iOS App Store and Google Play. Although anyone can use the YouTube Music app for free, it does offer a premium experience lumped into the YouTube Red subscription. Continue Reading
On the Move tracks hires, promotions, and other notable personnel changes within the online audio industry. Today’s changes include a new appointment at Universal, a departure from BPI, and a changing role at Google. Continue Reading
David Lowery, a former professional musician and now an advocate for artists’ rights, has written to the New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman to seek an investigation into unpaid mechanical royalties. This fall has seen some heated debate about licensing payments in the streaming music economy, particularly for publishers. Continue Reading
The big gossip swirling around this Monday morning centers once again on Apple Music. This time, the speculation is about the bigger role video may play in this streaming service following the rollout of a new embedding feature for videos hosted on Apple Music’s Connect profiles. Continue Reading
YouTube has entered an international deal with AMRA, the U.S.-based collecting society, to collect music royalties in more than 100 markets. The deal could streamline the process of collecting royalties for writers represented by AMRA and its parent company, Kobalt. Continue Reading
YouTube has at long last unveiled its paid, ad-free video subscription service. It’s called YouTube Red, and it will cost $9.99 a month. As predicted, a subscription to YouTube Red will include access to a redesigned YouTube Music app, which will replace Music Key. Continue Reading
YouTube announced that it will be hosting an event this Wednesday in Los Angeles to formally introduce details about its long-rumored paid video service. Google has been slowly moving toward this shift for months, and the event this week could reveal the culmination of its efforts to create both a more lucrative Netflix- or Hulu-style paid subscription and a formal music streaming platform. Continue Reading