In a move that will enhance potentially billions of views, Universal Music Group (UMG) has partnered with YouTube to convert 1,000 or so music videos into high definition. But according to YouTube, the upgraded videos won’t enjoy an upgraded royalty pa…
Category archives: Feature Story
Chance the Rapper, Kygo, Daddy Yankee Headlining the Inaugural Miami Beach Pop Festival
While Ultra Music Festival struggles to pin down a Miami-area location, a competitor has already moved into town. The inaugural Miami Beach Pop Festival, a three-day concert scheduled to begin on November 8th, just added a number of superstar headliner…
‘Red-Handed’ Genius Lyrics Found On More LyricFind Partner Sites
Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal published an explosive report about stolen lyrics and accusations of theft. Genius claimed it had over 100 examples of its lyrics being copied wholesale on Google’s search results. Google addressed the issue b…
To Halt Rampant Fake Streams on Spotify, the Music Industry Signs Anti-Manipulation Code of Conduct
Admittedly, the music industry has a major problem – fake streams. Three years ago, for example, Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN) found Jay-Z’s music streaming service, TIDAL, flat-out lied about its total streaming numbers for two popular al…
SOCAN Members Only Received $41 From Digital Sources Last Year
The Society of Composers, Authors, and Music Publishers of Canada, or SOCAN, has published its financials for 2018. Breaking down total collections, the Canadian performance rights organization collected $375 million ($284 million) last year, up 11% ov…
Aretha Franklin’s Lawyers Say Kecalf Franklin Doesn’t Have the “Ability, Skill, and Knowledge” to Serve as Estate Administrator
Last summer, the world lost a music legend – Aretha Franklin. The famous soul and gospel singer had succumbed to complications caused by pancreatic cancer. She was 76. In addition to leaving behind an incredible music catalog, she also left behind mul…
U.S. Patent Office Reveals Microsoft’s Next Gen AirPods Killer Dubbed the Surface Pen
Apple’s wireless earbuds, the AirPods, have proven a success for the Cupertino tech giant. Now, Microsoft wants in. Providing an estimated amount of units sold, Ming-Chi Kuo, a trusted Apple analyst at TF International Studies, says the company sold a…
Taylor Swift Breaks Apple Music’s ‘Pre-Add’ Streaming Record — Sorry, What’s a ‘Pre-Add’ Again?
Taylor Swift’s upcoming Lover album has broken the record for most ‘pre-added albums’ by a female artist on Apple Music. Pre-adds are Apple’s unique lingo for pre-orders of a streaming music album. Swift’s album achieved 178,600 pre-adds worldwide in t…
UMG Secured a Massive Settlement from NBCUniversal After the 2008 Fire — But Shared Nothing Back With Artists
The crisis surrounding UMG’s handling of the Universal Studios Fire of 2008 is worsening with news of a massive settlement. As Universal Music Group faces the specter of dozens of lawsuits stemming from its mishandling of the 2008 Universal Studios fir…
Apple Music Secures Trademark Filing in Canada for Its ‘Up Next’ Documentary Series
Several years ago, Apple Music officially unveiled a ‘now-forgotten’ mini-documentary series. In an effort to place the spotlight on its then-growing indie music catalog, the monthly series – dubbed Up Next – would focus on up-and-coming artists. The f…