Category archives: Major Labels

Is YouTube Finally Serious About Music Subscriptions?

After several attempts that failed to gain traction, YouTube is taking another stab at something the record labels insist it must – get people to pay to stream music. MIDiA analyst Mark Mulligan looks at why Google cares about subscription streaming and the new service’s chance of success. ____________________________________________ By…

BET Awards Nominees 2018: Khaled, Lamar Dominate

DJ Khaled and Kendrick Lamar lead the nominations for the 2018 BET Awards. Khaled is up for six awards and Lamar follows with five. The annual BET telecast celebrates excellence in music, film, TV, sports and philanthropy and airs live on June 24th. Complete list of nominees for the 2018…

Sony Music Buys $185M Stake In ‘Peanuts’ Brand

Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) has today announced that it has acquired a stake in the iconic ‘Peanuts’ brand. Created by Charles M. Schulz in 1950 and owned by Nova Scotia-based DHX Media, Sony purchased 49% of DHX Media’s 80% stake in ‘Peanuts’ for $185 million. DHX originally acquired the ‘Peanuts’…

Could Spotify Buy Universal? Should It? [MARK MULLIGAN]

Vivendi has been openly exploring spinning off Universal Music Group. Publically the talk is of a possible IPO, but the rumor mill has spun out several scenarios, including a purchase by Apple or Alibaba. But what if Spotify bought UMG? Could that bold move solve its ongoing profitability problem? _________________________________…

Indies Beat Majors To Grab Biggest Share Of Global Record, Music Publishing Market

The annual Music & Copyright survey of recorded music and publishing companies shows Universal Music Group maintaining its position as the world’s biggest record company and Sony topping music publishing. But the collective strength of indie labels and publishers again beat both. __________________________ Source: Music & Copyright market share report…

TIDAL Lands Exclusive On Unreleased Prince Music

The Prince Estate and TIDAL have announced plans to debut new Prince music exclusively on the streaming service. The new album will contain previously unreleased material from Prince’s extensive vault of recordings. The new Prince album – expected to be released in 2019 – will stream exclusively on TIDAL for…

YouTube Music Charts Makeover Offers Unfiltered Billboard Chart Alternative

YouTube this week launched new and revamped music charts in 44 countries, as part of what is likely the runup to its new music-centered paid subscription service. The new YouTube charts also offer an unfiltered alternative to some recently reconfigured Billboard rankings. _______________________________ YouTube Music has unveiled a new Trending…

How New Streaming Methodology Will Impact Billboard Charts

Billboard recently greenlit some promised changes to how music streams would be weighted when assembling their Hot 100, with the new methodology lending more weight to hybrid paid/ad supported services than those supported by ads alone. ___________________________ Guest post by Sammy Pisano, Manager, National Accounts at The Orchard from The…