Streaming Revenue Impressive, But Can It Ever Make Up For Lost Physical Sales?

With streaming revenue showing a massive increase in comparison to previous years, the major three record labels are rejoicing at their annual haul. A big part of this income still draws from physical sales however, and as these old-school revenue streams continue to thin to a trickle, will streaming be…

Kobalt Is Now A Next Generation Major Label In The Making [Mark Mulligan]

"Kobalt has been the poster child for the changing of the guard in the music business," writes MIDiA analyst Mark Mulligan. But it’s on a path to become much more as "next-generation label… plotting a course to becoming a next generation-major." __________________________________ By Mark Mulligan of MIDiA from his Music…

6 Analytics Tools: How To Change Future of Music Marketing

After a tough few years during which the sale of physical albums declined precipitously, the music industry seems to be making a relatively speedy recovery. This rebound has been assisted heavily by music companies’ harnessing of analytics and big data. Here we look at six such analytics tools that are…

Symphonic Distribution Expands To China

Independent music distributor Symphonic has expanded its reach to China via partnershipd with Tencent, NetEase and soon, says the company Alibaba.The new deals were spearheaded by indie rights powerhouse MERLIN. Content can be placed on Chinese music serives NetEase Cloud Music, Xiami (Alibaba), QQ Music, Kugou and Kuwo (Tencent Music…

WMG, Dubset Partner To Offer Legal DJ Mixes

Dubset, the music marketplace and rights management database for DJs and artists, has inked a deal with Warner Music Group (WMG). Warner is the latest major label to partner with the platform whose aim it is to equip DJs with new mix and remix distribution and monetization opportunities. Sony signed…

Artists Are Increasingly Rejecting Record Deals

Some record executives are starting to sweat, as the music industry morphs into one where the climate is significantly more favorable towards a DIY way of doing business and many artists are eschewing traditional label deals in favor of doing things their own way. _______________________________ Guest post by Bobby Owsinski…

2019: The State Of Sampling

In this piece, the team at Tracklib took a deep dive into the state of sampling in 2019, breaking down who’s sampling what, the rationale behind it, what the preferred software (and hardware) is, plus some of the past year’s most prominent sampling moments. __________________________________ Guest post by Oskar of…

Orchard Co-Founder Scott Cohen Joins WMG As Chief Innovation Officer

[UPDATED] Scott Cohen, co-founder of The Orchard, has joined Warner Music Group in the newly created position of Chief Innovation Officer, Recorded Music. Cohen exited the Sony owned indie distributor earlier this year. The move has been rumored for weeks. Cohen is charged with helping to chart a long-term course…

Kobalt Is Raising Another $100 Million Funding Round

Music services and music publishing company Kobalt is raising a new round of funding that could top $100 million. The new funding comes just a year after Kobalt closed a round that valued the company at $800 million. Kobalt founder and CEO Willard Ahdritz has confirmed the round, without divulging…

CD Baby EU DIY Musician Conference Returns To BerkIee Valencia Campus Next Month

CD Baby is returning to the Berklee College of Music campus in Valencia, Spain for the European edition of its popular DIY Musician Conference. To be held on April 6-7, the conference is designed to impact self-managed artists’ careers through actionable ideas and advice. The DIY Musician conference has been…