While Spotify gets at least one gold star for settling the songwriter/publisher class action lawsuit brought by Melissa Ferrick and David Lowery for $43.4 million, an even bigger online giant is ignoring its obligations to creators all together… _____________________________ Guest post by Chris Castle of Music Technology Policy Robert Levine…
Category archives: Streaming & Cloud
Key SoundCloud Exec Stephen Bryan Exits
Stephen Bryan, SoundCloud’s chief content officer is leaving the music streamer. Bryan joined SoundCloud in 2014 from Warner Music and was responsible for getting the licensing deals to move Soundcloud from a just a user-generated content site to launching their full fledged music streamer SoundCloud Go. _________________________________ "Stephen (Boyd)’s ability…
Does Music Piracy Still Exist In The Streaming Age?
While many believe that the streaming age brought about the end of illegal downloading of music, it seems that it has only replaced it with stream ripping, a process through which music is illegally saved while it’s being streamed. _________________________ Guest post by Bobby Owsinski of Music 3.0 Streaming seems…
NYSE Seeks Rules Change To Make Spotify Direct Sale Possible
To make way for a possible Spotify direct stock listing, the New York Stock Exchange has appealed to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a rules change. ________________________________________ If, as has been widely reported, Spotify does opt for a direct stock sale, it will save millions in IPO costs,…
Spotify Eyes $1 Billion Debt Restructure To Avoid Soaring Interest Rates
When Spotfify took on $1 billion in debt under difficult terms, we questioned the long term effect on the music streamer’s financial health. Now, Spotify is hoping to go public without an IPO, but last year’s debt deal could put the damper on those plans. ______________________________________ Spotify is seeking to…
Spotify Settles David Lowery, Melissa Ferrick Class Action Lawsuit with $43.4 Million Compensation Fund
[UPDATED] In a major victory for indie musicians, the combined class action lawsuits against Spotify brought by Cracker frontman and artist advocate David Lowery and singer/songwriter Melissa Ferrick have been settled with the music streamer establishing a $43.4 million fund to compensate songwriters and publishers whose work had been used…
Will Digital Aggregators Lead Industry On Transparency With Spotify, Others? [Chris Castle]
After Spotify received some criticism for the somewhat opaque and mysterious nature of its deals with major labels, the question is being raised if perhaps digital aggregators like CD Baby, the Orchard, and Loudr should be the ones to lead the way on industry transparency. ________________________ Guest post by Chris…
Advance Look At MIDiA’s "State Of The Streaming Nation" 2017 Report [Mark Mulligan]
"Streaming was the lynchpin of 2016’s growth and will be even more important in 2017," says top industry analyst Mark Mulligan of MIDIA Research. As this transition from music sales to music access accelerates, some music services are becoming dominant players, according to Mulligan in an advance look at the…
Tidal CEO Jeff Toig Out – 3rd Top Exec Departure In 2 Years
Tidal CEO Jeff Toig is out. It’s the 3rd departure of the top executive at Jay Z’s streaming music service in 2 years. Despite superstar backers and a recent $200 million investment from Sprint, Tidal has failed to gain major traction even as Spotify, Apple Music and others have fueled…
Spotify Shares "How Students Listen 2017" [Eliot Van Buskirk]
In addition to learning, expanding personal horizons and developing a plan for post student life, college is also a place where many shape their musical identities. Eliot Van Buskirk of Spotify Insights has taken a deep dive into how students listen and shared it via an interactive microsite. ______________________________ Guest…