YouTube Planning New Spotify Competitor "Remix" [REPORT]

YouTube is planning a March launch of a music service internally dubbed Remix, according to a new report. The move comes amidst increasing calls for YouTube to return more revenue to creators and rightsholders, and will be the streamer’s third attempt at getting users to pay. _____________________________ Google’s YouTube is…

Amazon Music Unlimited Adds 28 Countries

Amazon Music Unlimited, the third most popular music streamer in the US, is expanding to 28 new countries, mostly in Europe and and South America. ________________________________________ Since first launching in the US in October of 2016, Amazon Music Unlimited has expanded to the UK, Germany, Austria and Japan. Today it…

How I Got Over A Quarter Million Plays On Soundcloud [Bas Grasmayer]

[UPDATED] In this article Bas Grasmayer recounts how sharing music online has changed and evolved over the years, looking at the rise and fall of his time as a net DJ, and the experiences and opportunities with which it provided him. _________________________ Guest post Bas Grasmayer of Music Tech Future…

Inside Music Analytics: Chris Stapleton Has More In Common With Etta James, Van Morrison, Otis Redding Than You Think

In this piece Glenn Peoples looks at the rise of Chris Stapleton’s cross genre success with is cover of "Tennessee Whiskey" and how the soulful country number has been able to capture the attention of audiences typically more focused on R&B/soul legends. ___________________________ Guest post by Glenn Peoples, Music Insights…

More Fans Are Creating Their Own Playlists, Just 29% Pay To Stream [Nielsen 360 Report]

While the prominence of playlists has already increased to become one of the dominant forms of music consumption, more listeners appear to be taking the reigns when it comes to curation, according to a recent study from Nielsen. _______________________ Guest post by Bobby Owsinski of Music 3.0 Playlists are clearly…

Spotify’s ‘Today’s Top Hits" Has 12.3M Followers: Chartmetric Dives Into The Stats The Drive It

After well over a year of tracking the data coming out of Spotify’s ‘Today’s Top Hits’, Chartmetric has some revealing numbers concerning this incredibly popular playlist which, at 18.2 millions followers, has more than 7 million followers than its closest competitor. ____________________________ Guest post by Jason Joven and Sung Cho…

German Indie Label Powerhouse SPV Signs Worldwide Distribution Deal With The Orchard

Sony-owned music and film distributor The Orchard has announced a deal with independent label SPV for worldwide digital distribution. Founded in Germany, in 1984, SPV’s catalog includes Whitesnake, Sepultura, Kaiser Chiefs, Motörhead, The Game, Alice Cooper, Everlast, Monster Magnet, UFO and The Scorpions. SPV also has several in-house labels, including…

Music Sustainability: The State Of Streaming

As streaming’s dominance in the music business to grow, we’re taking a moment to look at the current state of streaming, as well as where it might be headed in the near future. ___________________________ Guest post from Rethink Music by Allen Bargfrede, original article on Slush Music “Alexa, play some…

Spotify Class Action Public Fairness Hearing This Friday

This Friday, Dec 1st there will be a public hearing about the fairness of the Spotify Class action settlement. Multiple attorneys will be providing oral arguments about what they see as a lack of fairness in the class settlement. Artists, songwriters, publishers and the general public are free to attend….

US Copyright Royalty Board Raises Some Music Streaming Royalty Rates For 2018

In what is expected to be the first of several new rate determinations, the United States Copyright Royalty Board has issued a cost of living adjustment for the rates paid to copyright holders by online webcasters. _____________________________________ The US Copyright Royalty Board has announced a cost of living adjustment to…