Although Amazon’s ‘Prime Live Events’ have been critiqued for being an ‘iTunes Festival for old people’, the small-scale gigs by these heritage acts actually represents some clever strategy on the part of Amazon, as it looks to mix of the live/streaming game in a crowded industry. __________________________________ Guest post by…
Category archives: Streaming & Cloud
Pandora, SiriusXM Acquisition Talks Heat Up… Again
Just weeks after talks that would lead to a SiriusXM acquisition of Pandora fell apart in a public dispute of stock value, the parties are back at the table. ____________________________________________ SiriusXM and Pandora are back in serious talks about an acquisition of the music streamer. The New York Post first…
SoundCloud To Integrate With Google Home Smart Speakers
In a one sentence blog post, SoundCloud announced that an integration with Google’s smart speaker Google Home was launching soon. The integration appears to be for all SoundCloud services, not just SoundCloud Go premium. _________________________________ "Yes, that’s right, hot news! SoundCloud will be coming to Google Home soon. Stay tuned…
Spotify Acquires Music Machine Learning Startup Niland
During yesterday’s Music Biz conference, Spotify’s Troy Carter shared that Spotify was becoming an "anticipatory" service, delivering the right music at the right moment. Carter’s prescience was likely driven by Spotify’s acquisition of music machine learning startup Niland, announced this morning. _________________________________ Spotify has acquired Paris-based music machine learning startup…
Pandora May Sell Ticketfly To Refocus On Streaming
Pandora is exploring the sale of ticket seller Ticketfly. Purchased for $335 million in 2015, Ticketfly combined with Pandora was touted as a game changer. But given Ticketmaster’s dominant position, the pairing has proven to be more good PR than great business. _____________________________________ During a self-imposed 30 day period when…
Universal Music Ties With Tencent In Major Expansion Into China
Universal Music Group and Tencent Music Entertainment Group have entered into a partnership that will significantly expand the international music market in China. _________________________________ Under the terms of a new deal, China’s Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) will distribute music from UMG’s vast global catalog on its popular streaming platforms QQ…
Warner Music Group Nearing Spotify Deal
Last week, Warner Music Group boss Steve Cooper announced the first new major label deal with YouTube. Now Cooper is reportedly close to cutting a new deal with Spotify. ________________________________ Warner Music Group will likely sign a new deal with Spotify within weeks, sources tell The Post. Universal and indie…
Universal Music Ties With Tencent In Major Expansion Into China
Universal Music Group and Tencent Music Entertainment Group have entered into a partnership that will significantly expand the international music market in China. _________________________________ Under the terms of a new deal, China’s Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) will distribute music from UMG’s vast global catalog on its popular streaming platforms QQ…
Spotify, Blockchain And Music’s Future [Thomas Euler]
In this piece Thomas Euler defends his optimistic projections (sparked by Spotify’s purchase of Mediachain labs) of how blockchain technology could be beneficial to the music industry, while acknowledging that there are plenty of concerns and complications involved as well. ________________________________ Guest post by Thomas Euler on Attention Econo.me Life…
Spotify Creates Shareable Playlist Poems Just in Time For Mother’s Day
There are already more than 8 million playlists devoted to Mom’s on Spotify. But just in time for Sunday’s Mother’s Day, Spotify has created playlist poems to share with Mom. Each sOng title spells out a Message” Back to those 8 million playlists already on Spotify, top songs with “mom,”…