The Recording Academy has declined to lend its endorsement to an MLC bid from major publishers like Sony/ATV, UMPG, and Warner/Chappell. The following is a developing story; please check back for continued updates. Last update: Monday, 3:00 pm PT. Ins…
Author archives: Paul Resnikoff
The Real Reasons Artists Succeed on Spotify — From a Playlisting Pro
Follow these tips and win. George Goodrich of Playlist Push has witnessed thousands of successful Spotify playlist campaigns. He partnered with Digital Music News to share the most important tips he’s learned. (1) Write long albums with short songs. Ra…
The Radio Disney Music Awards are Getting Rebranded as ‘The ARDYs’: “Families and Kids Really Hate Awards Shows”
Disney is retreading its longtime Radio Disney Music Awards into something less ‘awards showy’. Disney isn’t ditching its longtime awards show. But the entertainment giant seems to be stripping out some cliché features. For starters, the ‘Awards’ name…
‘Bone Conduction’ Headphones Don’t Go Over Your Ears — But How Do They Transmit Sound?
‘Bone conduction’ headphones are one of the strangest things you’ll try. But they amazingly transmit audio while keeping your ear canal open to other noises. What? You’re not subscribed to the Digital Music News Podcast? We’re available on iTunes, S…
Amazon Music Is Preparing to Launch an Ad-Supported, Free Version — Report
Who says Spotify and YouTube get to have all the ad-supported fun? ‘Ad-supported’ has become a dirty word in certain sectors of the music industry. Though that doesn’t seem to be stopping Amazon from toying with an ad-supported expansion. The foray in…
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek Says He Won’t Raise the $10/Month Price Point — Tough Luck, Songwriters?
Spotify has a lot of reasons for refusing to pay increased royalties to songwriters. But this is easily the biggest one. In its formal filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., Spotify outlined a number of reasons for refusing to pay …
SoundExchange Sues Music Choice Over a ‘Persistent Effort to Avoid Paying Royalties’
SoundExchange’s lawsuit alleges that cable-based streaming music service Music Choice is cooking its books. But is there more to this story? Another day, another contentious music royalty lawsuit. This time, the plaintiff is SoundExchange, a non-profi…
Coachella Creates Dedicated ‘Safe Spaces’ to Combat Rampant Sexual Harassment Complaints
Coachella is under pressure to address a growing sexual harassment problem. The Coachella experience is anything-but-idyllic for many women, though festival parent Goldenvoice has struggled to generate solutions. Now, there’s one potential remedy: ‘saf…
AMLC Songwriters Blast Major Music Publishers Over Wrongful Royalty Claims — Here’s Their Statement
Once the MMA goes into effect, where will the $1.2 billion in ‘black box’ royalties go? The answer to that question depends on who ends up taking the mantle of the Mechanical Licensing Collective, or MLC, a government-mandated agency that forms a criti…
‘Non-Profit’ SoundExchange Refuses to Disclose Top Executive Salaries, ‘Black Box’ Holding Balances from 2018
SoundExchange, a US-based non-profit royalty collection agency subject to public federal disclosure laws, has refused to disclose critical financial information from fiscal year 2018 to Digital Music News. In 2017, SoundExchange CEO Michael Huppe colle…