TechCrunch – November 29, 2017
When Ryan Star and Jace Kay founded their startup, Stationhead, they wanted to bring elements of traditional radio to streaming. With their app, though, users can now turn their personal playlists into radio stations. They have the ability share playlists, as well the opportunity to broadcast them live, introduce the songs and pretty much talk about whatever else they desire. Luckily, Stationhead doesn’t have to worry about licensing songs either because it assimilates with Spotify and Apple Music, making the app more user friendly.
Medium – December 2, 2017
Over the last several years, there has been a waning in turnout at classical music concerts and public arts funding has decreased so severely that some have considered completely cutting it out. For classical music, especially, the human listening experience is key. Creating a live listening experience that doesn’t just inspire, but engage, is the only way that classical music will make it through the streaming age.
Hypebot – December 4, 2017
Spotify has admitted to streaming 300,000 songs illegally. A lawyer for the streaming service said that the “ballpark” estimate of songs did not have proper mechanical licensing, which estimates the lawsuit at $43.4 million. If the settlement is approved, Spotify will pay a fine of $100 per song. This fee is a bit abnormal for these types of lawsuits with fees ranging from $750 - $150,000 per infringed song.
Music Business Worldwide – December 5, 2017
The music industry is one that is constantly going through changes. From formatting of music to the type of music people want to hear, the industry has had to adapt to the changing times. Two of the main terms that affect the music industry are frontline and catalogue and their main difference is 18 months. However, those terms refer to CDs and shelf life (past 18 months and your catalogue), and their needs to be another way to categorize those format changes for streaming.
Billboard – December 6, 2017
Google and Amazon have found themselves in a bit of a catfight after Amazon refused to sell some Google products that compete with Amazons. Because of this, Google has retaliated and pulled YouTube from Amazon Fire TV and Echo Show devices. While these two powerhouse companies strive for dominance, it’s the consumers that are caught in the middle with little direction on where to go.
