FRI. BRIEF: Behind Spotify’s Podcast Move • Scooter Buys Atlas • Techstars Music Class Of 2019 • More

FRIDAY 2.8.19
Music Business News From Around The Web
Updated continuously under the More News tab

Music Streaming Rates 2018: Per Stream Rates Drop and YouTube’s Value Gap Is Very Real

[UPDATED] 2018 saw music streaming come into its own as the dominant source of recording music revenue. But as streaming volumes swelled, the YouTube value gap and its pitifully small payout percentage became even more apparent. _________________________________ Guest post by David Lowery of The Trichordist Here we go again. To…

Spotify’s Podcast Play Not A Sure Winner says MIDiA Analyst Mark Mulligan

Spotify declared itself an "audio-first’ streaming service on Wednesday with a $500 million push into podcasting led by the acquisition of Gimlet Media and Anchor, with other deals in the wings. But Spotify’s major podcast play is far from a sure bet, says top industry analyst Mark Mulligan of MIDiA….

Musiio Raises $1M To Bring Spotify-Like AI To Other Music Services, Labels, Publishers

Musiio has raised a $1 million seed round to continue development of its use of artificial intelligence (AI) which brings Spotify-like discovery and curation tools to other music services and AI driven A&R tools to labels and other music companies. Singapore’s Wavemaker Partners, US’s Exponential Creativity Ventures and undisclosed angels…

Spotify (SPOT) Stock Continues To Fall

Spotify (SPOT) stock fell 2.83% Wednesday after the streamer’s Q2 earnings report and news of two major acquisitions. The stock was trading down another 2.21% at $132.46 in pre-market trading Thursday. Strong user growth and its first ever profitable quarter were offset by lower than anticipated earnings and the acquisition…

Acquiring Two Major Podcast Companies, Spotify Posts a Profit in Q4 2018

Spotify bets big on podcasting to fuel its growth in 2019. Spotify has released its financial results for the fourth fiscal quarter of 2018. For the first time in the company’s history, operating income, net income, and free cash flow were all positive…

Orchard Co-Founder Issues Warning To Music Industry: ‘You’re Probably Going To Be Replaced’

In this article, Oisin Lunny shares a dire warning from Scott Cohen, the enigmatic music tech pioneer affiliated with company’s like, Spotify, The Orchard, and the British Phonographic Industry. In a recent keynote presentation, Cohen warned a massive industry sea change would likely soon reshape the music business entirely. _________________________________…

This Infographic Tells Story Of Spotify’s Strong Q4

Even as news was breaking that Spotify had acquired major podcasters Gimlet Media and Anchor to further its mission as an "audio-first" company, the streamer also reported a solid Q4 2018 with both strong user growth and its first ever quarterly operating profit. Just in case you’re no interested in…

WED. BRIEF: Spotify Acquires Podcasters, Reports Strong Q4 • UMG, Sony Face Class Action Suit • Raised In Space • More

WEDNESDAY 2.6.19
Music Business News From Around The Web
Updated continuously under the More News tab

Spotify hit 96m paying subscribers in 2018 – and just posted its first ever operating profit

Firm predicts that subscriber count will reach approximately 122m by end of 2019
The post Spotify hit 96m paying subscribers in 2018 – and just posted its first ever operating profit appeared first on Music Business Worldwide.