James Cridland’s Future of Radio is a column by the Australia-based radio futurologist. THIS WEEK: Radio regulatory changes on the horizon in UK. The launch of the world’s first voice-controlled hybrid radio for cars. Also a DRM car radio in India, and much more. Continue Reading
Amazon is continuing the talent grab for its music operations. The latest hire is Kelly Rich, who will be senior label relations manager for Nashville. Continue Reading
Podtrac has released its ranking of the top 20 podcasts for January 2017. The most recent monthly chart has some small shuffles in placement, but the roster of shows in question looks the same as those from December. Continue Reading
Podcast company Midroll Media announced three new hires for its executive team. These additions further expand the podcast talent pool under the E.W. Scripps umbrella; Scripps acquired Midroll Media in July 2015 and then purchased podcast listening app Stitcher from Deezer in June 2016. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: TV still a music springboard; Vertigo, the latest experiment in social listening. Continue Reading
Tidal announced the hire of two industry leaders to newly created roles on its content team. Tony Gervino will assume the role of VP, culture and content, while Elliott Wilson’s new title is editorial director, culture and content, hip-hop. Continue Reading
CISAC has signed a memorandum of understanding with the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation. This arrangement is a step towards strengthening copyright, technical exchange, education, and training of organizations collecting creator revenues. Continue Reading
Soundtrack Your Brand has received financing of $22 million. Nordic VC fund Industrifonden and the U.K.’s Balderton Capital led the found. The company, which is backed by Spotify and founded by former Spotify execs, is a B2B version of the streaming service. Continue Reading
Prince is still racking up the fans from beyond the grave. Songs by the multi-talented songwriter and performer were streamed 5.9 million times in their first two days back on streaming services, according to BuzzAngle Music. Continue Reading
New Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Ajit Pai advocated for “activated” FM chips in smartphones, but said the FCC would not mandate that technology advance. Why not? And why don’t phone makers activate those chips in the first place? Analysis. Continue Reading
SoundCloud is making another foray into programmatic advertising. The audio platform has partnered with Rubicon Project to offer automated buying of video and audio ads on its service. Continue Reading
Uncover Studios announced its official launch as a marketing podcast and influencer company. The company, owned by marketing agency TMPG, creates original podcast content and multimedia marketing campaigns. In a press release, Uncover explained its work as aiming “to maximize brand impact with original podcast shows, custom content, influencer campaigns and large-scale multimedia support.” Continue Reading