The Fern Talks – Page 17948

What’s Next for Pandora?

Founder Tim Westegren presenting Pandora in 2007 (Tara Hunt CC by SA 2.0)

On Monday, Pandora’s CEO exited the company amidst a broader shake-up. Where will founder Tim Westergren take his company next?

Pandora has been making bold moves to progress its business model and compete more successfully in the music streaming market. But despite aggressive efforts, internal tensions and investor angst are clouding the long-term vision.

The Executive Shake-Up

On Monday, Pandora has announced some serious executive changes across the company. As part of a major shuffle, president and CEO Brian McAndrews departed the company, with founder Tim Westergren stepping up to take his place. But that was the latest in a string of shuffles: Jim Feuille has now assumed the role of Chairman, Mike Herring was named President and Chief Financial Officer, Sara Clemens moved to Chief Operating Officer, and Chris Phillips was elevated to Chief Product Officer.

In a formal statement, Pandora noted that the changes would ”accelerate the company’s growth strategy,” though perhaps Andrews was stepping too hard on the accelerator. Regardless, a stability-loving Wall Street reacted poorly: after news of the changes broke out, Pandora shares sharply decreased in value, plummeting 9%.

The Expensive Expansion

Since the uprise of music streaming platforms, Pandora has been experiencing increasing competition from the likes of Spotify, Apple Music and Tidal. That pressure has forced Pandora to diversify its platform from a free, ad-supported music streaming service to a broader business concept with the recent inclusion of Ticketfly (cost $450 million) and the purchase of assets in Rdio ($75 million).

The purchase of Rdio and acquisition of Ticketfly was two expensive moves, and part of a broader vision to create a ‘full stack music service‘. Pandora hopes that by moving into more of an on-demand platform with additional, diversified features, it will attract more subscribers and established a greater competitive position. However, some are skeptical about Pandora’s ability to enter new markets, and worry whether these expensive payouts can ultimately be recouped.

Disappointing Financial Results

In Q4 2015, Pandora recorded 81.1 million listeners, down from 81.5 million listeners in Q4 the previous year. Although this is less than 1% decline, it still falls short of projections and raises the troubling possibility of a plateau. The company also reported losses of $169 million during the period, thanks in part of aggressive stock-based compensation and substantial royalty pay-outs.

Sales Rumors

Then, there’s talk that Pandora is working with Morgan Stanley to meet with potential buyers. The talks are preliminary and may not result in a deal, according to the New York Times, though a sale could nestle the company into a broader, more diversified music play.

So what’s next for Pandora?

Despite a massive executive shuffle, large-scale payouts, and a concerning dip in listener numbers, there are no definite reports of a sale. On the bright side, Pandora also increased revenue year-on-year.

But the biggest bright spot could be Westergren himself, the original founder who’s no stranger to tight spots. Indeed, before Pandora hit Wall Street, before the company even had funding, it was Westergren who kept Pandora alive on maxed out credit cards. That gritty survivalism could be what it takes to get Pandora to an entirely new competitive position.

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Flight Of The Conchords Extend Tour, Premier New Songs On the Road

New Zealand’s #1 parody-rock duo, Flight of the Conchords, announced today a revised tour schedule, which sees their North American tour gaining a few dates in June and July. The newly added stops are June 25, Portland, OR at Keller Auditorium; June 28, San Francisco, CA at Shoreline Amphitheatre;

Kendirck Lamar, Outkast, El-P, Chuck D Discuss Impact Of Phife Dawg On Q-Tip’s “Abstract Radio”

On Friday, Kendrick Lamar, OutKast, El-P, and Chuck D joined Q-Tip on his Beats 1 radio show, “Abstract Radio,” to discuss the impact Phife Dawg had on their lives and careers. Phife Dawg passed away March 22nd. During the show, Q-Tip played a two-hour mix of A Tribe Called Quest songs, including

Why Streaming Exclusives are Bad for the Music Business

1. Streaming exclusives penalize paying music fans.

The typical music fan pays for one music streaming service, if at all. But for an industry that constantly complains about free-loading fans, it’s also great at punishing those who pay.

If you’re paying for Spotify, you can’t get the Apple Music exclusive. If you’re paying for Apple Music, you can’t get the Tidal exclusive. If you’re paying for Rhapsody, you can’t get the Spotify exclusive. That’s a frustrating mess for the music industry’s best customers, and a great way to stunt revenue growth.

2. Streaming exclusives scare away casual music listeners.

The biggest industries and most successful companies understand that massive scale comes from reaching beyond the core. Budweiser isn’t playing to the craft brew expert, just like Hyundai isn’t targeting seasoned racing pros. In the 90s, the industry offered ease-of-entry for people who didn’t really love music (or, could at least live without it). In terms of delivery, CDs were easy, ubiquitous and worked everywhere; the radio just turned on, and so did MTV.

Steve Jobs understood that, but unfortunately iTunes downloads are quickly going poof. Replacing that with a patchwork of battling streaming music services, each with its own bundle of exclusives, is a great way to discourage millions of casual fans who want something simple and easy. They’ll go do something else, and that includes thousands of other entertainment options (and illegal services).

3. Streaming exclusives encourage piracy.

Just look at The Life of Pablo. According to some estimates, more than a million started Tidal trials to hear the release. But half-a-million torrented the album on the first day. All of which proves the new digital adage: if it’s difficult to obtain, music fans will frequently choose convenience over doing the right thing. The comfortable platform simply trumps artist loyalty.

4. Streaming exclusives alienate core fans.

Even if they’re not stealing, they’re getting pissed off. Why? Because a streaming exclusive basically shows that an artist cares more about a some special streaming deal than the fan relationship.

5. Streaming exclusives send the wrong message to emerging artists.

Smaller artists shouldn’t be striking exclusive deals, or excluding specific streaming services (unless there’s serious money involved). The reason is that withholding access to music at an early career stage increases the chances of obscurity and missed connections, all of which translates into zero long-term sales.

It also prevents happy accidents, such as those that happened to Perrin Lamb, who was suddenly included on a popular Spotify playlist (and collected more than $40,000 in the process).

6. Streaming exclusives encourage low-paying free trials.

Free trials give users a taste, but exclusives can encourage temporary trials. A few forget to cancel, but that only complicates the real subscriber growth picture for services.

Even worse, artists get paid poorly on free trials, if they’re getting paid at all (see Apple Music).

7. Streaming exclusives are a poor substitute for real ‘windowing’.

Music industry executives famously dropped the ball on new technology, and lost about two-thirds of their entire business in the process. So what are they missing right now? One giant miss is happening around windowing, or rather, the lack of a well strategized, smart windowing approach.

Hollywood has had a highly successful windowing approach for decades. And despite major problems transitioning into the digital era, Hollywood is at least forging ahead with some semblance of a windowed release strategy. Whether it’s MGO, Netflix, Screening Room, Cineplex Odeon, or Delta Airlines, the film business is actively thinking about a windowing release strategy that will make sense for them.

By comparison, the music industry has chaotic, one-off streaming exclusives, with few best practices or industry-wide guides to help. That’s disorganization and in-fighting, not real industry growth or strategy.

8. Streaming exclusives complicate the path towards paid subscription.

What artists like Taylor Swift and Adele want is simple: exclusion of their content for paid-only streaming channels. And if there’s going to be a ‘streaming exclusive,’ it should be for paying music fans only — across all platforms.

Why this approach? Streaming music is growing at an unprecedented rate, but there still aren’t enough paying fans to sustain a real recording industry. Spotify has 30 million paying customers, but an estimated 70 million non-paying customers. In that light, a Spotify exclusive with Drake only complicates the broader music industry mission of getting people to pay.

It’s simple: If you’re paying, you get access. If you’re not, you have to wait. That’s the type of broad-scale streaming exclusive that will make this industry truly grow.

Image by stantontcady (CC by ND 2.0). Written while listening to Sturgill Simpson.

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Which Is the Best Music Streaming Service?

When it comes to streaming music, there are plenty of options. Here’s a way to sift through it all.

To start, here’s a quick breakdown of what leading services Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Tidal, SoundCloud and Pandora offer:

Screen Shot 2016-03-28 at 18.25.44

The above chart allows you to quickly identify which service best suits your musical needs, with a more in-depth analysis below. In it, we’ll take a look at each streaming platform and the features it has to offer its users. While it’s impossible to directly compare all of these services, this information will hopefully allow you to identify which service is best suited to your tastes and preferences.

Keep in mind that these are in no particular order, as the ‘best’ streaming service is entirely subjective.

”A well-rounded music service with a fairly large catalogue and good quality streaming”

Tiers:

Spotify ad-supported version (free)
Spotify Premium ($10 a month)

Subscribers:

Active users (est. 100 million)
Paying users (30 million+)

Features:

Spotify Premium users have the ability to play songs on demand from any device, and easily access collections.
Access to radio stations and on-demand songs
Lots of personalized playlists, i.e. Fresh Finds, Discover Weekly, etc.
Facebook integration.
Lots of people (and potentially your friends) on board.

Platforms:

iOS (ranked top-grossing app in the UK; 3rd in the US)
Android.
Windows Mobile.
Mac, Windows desktop apps.

Offline playback:

Spotify premium users only

Benefits

Availability: Spotify is available across a wide variety of platforms and a large number of countries.

Large, Navigable Selection: Spotify has a large catalog of over 30 million songs, which are searchable by artist, genre, album or even record label. The service reportedly adds approximately 20,000 songs every day.

Great Playlists and Discovery: Spotify has extensive playlists that are continuously updated, which makes discovery easy. That includes ‘Discover Weekly,’ updated every Monday with a two-hour personalized playlist, and ‘Fresh Finds,’ which includes 6 new genre-specific playlists updated every Wednesday.

Solid Interface: One of the best. Spotify is easy and simple to use, with sub-categories and a search tool that populates results correctly. And it rarely crashes or freezes.

Social: Spotify has great social features which make it easier for users to share playlists, as well as follow what friends are listening to.

Interesting extras, i.e. the Spotify running feature, which matches music to the speed that the user is running. Another cool feature matches the music to the environment (like the weather).

Drawbacks

Missing catalogue: Spotify has 30 million songs but there are gaps. So if you are into remixes, EDM or user-generated content, you may be disappointed.

Low royalty rates: Major artists like Taylor Swift, Adele, Prince and most recently Gwen Stefani have all pulled their music from the service and made it exclusive on other music platforms, thanks to low royalty rates on the ad-supported version. They feel Spotify is actively devaluing music, and treating artists unfairly.

Verdict

Spotify is a well-rounded music service with a fairly large catalog and solid quality streaming. It’s ideal for anyone who likes to discover new music and enjoys total portability. Also good if you are into social media.

But, if you are a massive Taylor Swift fan, or you love Adele or Kanye then you may be disappointed: these artists, along with a handful of others, are missing, and may never come on board. Also, if you care how your favorite artists are getting paid, then you should probably know that Spotify’s streaming royalties in ad-supported version are fairly low, especially on the free ad-supported version.

”A wide-spanned catalogue of songs, though there is no free option”

Tiers:

Paid service – $9.99/month or $14.99 for a family account.
No free service (outside of 3 mo. trial)

Subscribers:

11 million

Features:

Users can play any song on demand, from any device or environment.

Platforms:

iOS
Apple Watch
Apple TV
Mac
PC
Android

Offline playback:

Paid service subscribers can stream saved music without data or Wifi.

Benefits

Free trial: Apple Music offers a 3-month free trial, so there is the benefit of being able to try before you buy.

Large catalog: The service gives its user access to 30 + million songs (like rival Spotify).

Radio: Integration of Beats 1, a 24-hour, live radio station with known deejays.

iTunes Integration: Allows users to integrate iTunes libraries into their Apple Music library.

Family bundle option: Apple’s family plan is $14.99, which means up to 6 people can use the service. Spotify, and other rivals, lack that sort of deal.

Availability: Available in approximately 113 countries (better than Spotify, especially if you reside in a far flung place).

Drawbacks

No free option: There is no free ad-supported version of Apple, unlike with Pandora or Spotify.

Radio: That includes most radio stations, though even on the paid side, radio playlists tend to loop and should be refreshed more often.

Bugs. The launch of Apple Music was met with plenty of complaints, including the mangling of personal iTunes download accounts. A lot of those have been resolved, but expect a few ticks.

Verdict

Apple Music has a catalog that rivals Spotify. So if you’re deliberating between the two, there is little difference there. Apple Music’s integration of Beats 1 is a massive benefit and is probably where Apple Music has the upper-hand on Spotify, especially as their paid option is the same price.

Apple Music’s family option costs $14.99 a month for up to 6 users. If you and your family members are all signed up to different music streaming services, you could really save money with this option.

Apple Music’s downfall (if any) is the fact that they don’t have a free option, like Spotify, YouTube and other streaming platforms. After three months, you will have to pay for the service. But, this is ultimately good for artists, as they will typically get paid more on Apple than on Spotify. Indeed, artists like Taylor Swift are available on Apple Music, largely because of higher rates and better treatment (perceived or otherwise).

There is a free 3 month trial, so you could always try it out, and see what you think.

”A good radio service that knows what you like, though it’s not on-demand ”

Tiers:

Basic ad-supported radio service (free).
Pandora One (commercial free): $4.99 a month.

Subscribers:

80 million active users
Approximately 4 million paying subscribers

Features:

Users have access to customizable radio stations with a limit on the number of times they can skip tracks.

Platforms:

iOS
Android
Windows
Mac
PC

Offline playback:

None of the two tiers allow users to listen offline.

Benefits

Good music discovery: The thumbs up and thumbs down feature allows you to select songs you like and the ones you don’t want to hear again. The suggested-song algorithm is also great for music discovery.

Free version: The basic mobile version is free for users.

Low price: The price point is lower than other music services.

Drawbacks

Less control: This is radio, and a mostly ‘lean back’ experience. So if you need to play your music ‘on-demand,’ this isn’t the choice for you. Users can’t control the exact songs they play. Users cannot rewind a song or repeat a song as the function isn’t available.

Ads: Free tier has a lot of ads.

Catalog: Pandora has a limited music catalog (though that’s not a bother for many listeners).

Licensing restrictions: Pandora is bound by all types of listening limitations, including the number of skips, number of songs from the same artist, and number of songs from a particular album (within specific time listening ranges). That drives some listeners nuts, while others hardly notice.

Verdict

Pandora is probably one of the best services for music discovery, as it matches new music to the tastes of the user. However, Pandora is a radio service at its core. You cannot simply choose the music you want to hear, nor can you download music or create custom playlists (like Spotify and Apple Music). The features are limiting in this sense.

Beyond this, Pandora also has lower audio quality.

But, Pandora is great if you want to listen and discover music in a hands-off way, and don’t want to pay a lot of money. The free tier is good, but may bog you down with ads. But there’s also Pandora One (Pandora’s premium service) which is ad-free and only $4.99 (half the cost of Spotify and Apple). Just be aware that you’ll have access to far smaller catalog, with far less control than Spotify or Apple Music.

The conclusion is this: Pandora is not a service you can directly compare with Apple Music or Spotify, but it is an good option for radio enthusiasts.

Unknown-6

”The most popular streaming service of them all”

Tiers:

Free ad-supported version.
YouTube Red ($10/month, still in development)

Users:

One billion active monthly users

Features:

Users have access to a vast variety of music video content. The selection spans songs, mixtape content, covers, live concert recordings, remixes, and all manner of user-generated stuff. It’s a little chaotic, but this is probably the single largest collection of music online.

Platforms:

iOS
Windows
Android
Blackberry
Mac
PC

Offline playback:

Available on YouTube Red.

Benefits

Library: YouTube is the world’s largest music streaming service by far, with a massive library of music.

Multitask: You can watch videos and listen to music whilst searching for other songs and playing with other features.

Sharing options: Most people are on YouTube, so its incredibly easy to share.

Additional content: The service gives its users access to ample amounts of additional content, like covers, live concerts etc.

Drawbacks

Audio quality: The audio quality is lower than most of its competitors.

Less organized: The service is more chaotic as its less organized than other streaming services, like Spotify for example.

Verdict

YouTube is a great engine for playing music as well as discovering new music. Having a free tier and a paid tier (YouTube Red) gives you options.

The audio quality isn’t as good as other streaming platforms, but you have the added benefit of the quantity of content. If you like a variety of different content, then YouTube is probably the best service for you. YouTube Red also allows you to watch video’s and listen to music whilst searching for other songs.

Also, if you are a musician, a DJ, or a recording artists who is up-and coming, YouTube gives you the opportunity that other streaming platforms don’t. You can upload your own content and create revenue from it, and monitor your channel. VEVO is a higher-end layer, though lots of content on YouTube is lower-quality.

”A luxury music service with high-fidelity audio, good for hip-hop fans”

Tiers:

Tidal Premium ($9.99 /month)
Tidal HiFi ($19.99 /month)
- (Both versions are ad-free).

Users:

Officially 1 million (with a potential doubling of that thanks to Kanye’s exclusive TLOP release)

Features:

Music and videos on-demand.
Access to Tidal X

Platforms:

iOS
Android
PC apps
Web browsers.

Offline playback:

Both tiers allow users to listen while their device is offline.

Benefits

Exclusive content: Tidal has exclusive content from massive artists like Beyonce, Kanye West, Rihanna, Daft Punk and several others. The content includes in-concert exclusives as well.

Artist-friendly: The service is widely known as being artist-friendly, so if you care about how your favorite artists gets paid for their craft, then Tidal is a good option.

Audio quality: Tidal’s audio quality is the best out of all the streaming services.

Drawbacks

Navigation: The app isn’t as easy to navigate as Spotify.

Cost: The service is way more expensive than any other streaming service, and there’s no free option. Unless you are using high-quality expensive equipment you will not hear the benefits of the ‘high fidelity’ audio that the service offers.

Verdict

Tidal is the best service for sound quality, so if you prioritize quality over quantity then this service is a solid choice.

Also, if you are a Hip-Hop/Rap music fan, then this has some of the best exclusive content for this genre.

However, ‘high-fidelity’ music comes at a cost: Tidal’s premium, $9.99 tier is on par with Spotify and Apple Music, while ‘Hi-Fi’ is $19.99, which is double the cost of any of the other streaming services.

sound

”A free service that allows you to quickly and easily upload music”

Tiers:

Free tier
SoundCloud Go – $9.99 web/android and $12.00 iOS (launched March 29th)

Subscribers:

175 million monthly users (free tier)

Features:

Listeners can pick the song they want to listen to, as well as upload their own content.
Plenty of pre-created playlists as well, including by genre.

Platforms:

iOS
Android
Web

Offline playback:

None (free tier)
SoundCloud Go has offline playback

Benefits

Sharing options: SoundCloud gives users the option to share music privately with friends of publicly through social media networks.

Navigation: The service is easy to use, great for musicians/DJ’s as you can record something on the spot and post it up directly.

No uploading limits: There are no limits to the size of files uploaded.

Drawbacks

Limited features: There are no editing features, so although a song can be uploaded pretty much instantly, there are no tools to easily edit.

Verdict

SoundCloud is a massive platform for musicians, DJ’s, and up-and-coming’ artists, somewhat like YouTube. It’s quick and easy for artists to upload their content, and has the added benefit of being free for both the uploader and the listener. This means that you get more unique content on SoundCloud than you would on other streaming services, like Spotify, Apple Music or Tidal for example. The flip side is that this also opens the door to considerable low-quality content, similar to YouTube.

However, the platform has good social links, which makes it easier for users to share music with friends across social media platforms, like Facebook for example.

Update: SoundCloud has just launched a paid subscription service (March 29th). More updates as they come.

Beyond these streaming services, there are other options in the streaming market that you may want to check out:

Google Play: Catalog of 20 million songs, Sound quality: up to 320 kbps; service has a free tier and a $10/month tier.

Rhapsody: Catalog of 32 million songs, Sound quality: up to 192 kbps; service has a $10/month tier.

Deezer: Catalog of 40 million songs, Sound quality: up to 1411 kbps; service has a free tier and a $19.99/month tier.

Top image adapted from Ethan Lofton using Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC by 2.0).

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But Will They Switch? Apple Music Launches Another Drake Exclusive

First Apple Music launched an exclusive music docu-series called The Score. Now, Drake has helped them score another.

The new music exclusive comes from Canadian R&B duo DVSN. The mysterious duo comprises of producer Nineteen85 and singer Daniel Daley who are signed to Drake’s OVO Sound label. It was Nineteen85 who actually produced Drake’s Hotline Bling.

Drake has always been a keen advocate of Apple Music since its launch last year, so it’s hardly surprising that DVSN’s music is being released exclusively through the platform. Drake was present at Apple Music’s launch in San Francisco last year, the start of the ongoing relationship. Since then, Drake’s hit song Hotline Bling was first released on Apple Music before any other streaming service, with reports saying that Apple Music actually funded the video of the song.

Drake’s OVO Sound radio show is also an Apple Music exclusive, and currently only available on Apple’s Beats 1 radio station. All of which is great for Apple and Drake, though limiting the availability of music will always cause an outcry from fans who pay for competing streaming services.

Accordingly, DVSN fans took to Twitter to show their disappointment at their music not being available on Spotify.

The question is, will Apple’s exclusive content encourage Spotify subscribers to jump onboard? Or, do platforms trump exclusives in the end?

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Kanye West’s ‘Famous’ Finally Hits Spotify and Apple Music

Kanye West’s The Life Of Pablo album is still a Tidal exclusive, but a remixed version of song Famous featuring Rihanna has just hit two streaming services: Spotify and Apple Music.

West has stayed true to his word — so far — that his The Life Of Pablo album would remain a Tidal exclusive. He stated in a tweet that his latest album would ‘never never never’ be available on Apple Music of Spotify for that matter.

Screen Shot 2016-03-28 at 06.53.47

But Kanye is full of surprises. The rapper has updated his album at least three times since it launched on Tidal. Kayne’s also released a new track called ‘Ultralight Prayer’ as an Easter surprise. And now, he’s made a song from his album The Life Of Pablo available on Spotify and Apple Music despite it being widely known that he is not a supporter of either of those services.

That has stirred speculation that the album will become widely available across the other streaming services. The move could alleviate some piracy issues, perhaps a predictable outcome given the extreme limitations on legitimate access. It could also provoke another round of intense media coverage, especially if Kanye contradicts his earlier loyalties to Tidal.

And whether calculated or not, this is a circus that always features Kanye at its center.

Meanwhile, Kanye’s decision towards hyper-exclusivity raises fresh discussion over exactly how artists should be approaching their digital releases. That includes ‘windowing,’ the as-yet-perfected art of timing platform releases to maximize sales and reward more dedicated (and financially supportive) fans. So far, Kanye is far better at media manipulation and spotlight-hogging than content release strategizing.

(Image by Kenny Sun, Creative Commons, Attribution 2.0 Generic, cc by 2.0)

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Is Kesha Making A Comeback?

Kesha has posted an image of herself on Instagram with the caption ‘been writing all day,’ sparking speculation of new music ahead.

The update comes as surprising news, as the pop star has been battling a lengthy and ugly legal battle with her previous producer, Dr. Luke. Kesha alleges that Luke raped and psychologically abused her since the age of 18.

The ugly warfare has crowded time for creative work, though this feels like a time-consuming fight to the finish. Dr. Luke point-blank denies the allegations, and claims Kesha is ‘manufacturing’ information to extricate herself from her Sony contract. The pop star denies those denials: just recently, Kesha fired back on her Facebook page, saying, ”This case has never been about a renegotiation of my record contract…this is about being free from my abuser.”

Raising some suspicions is that Kesha requested a withdrawal from her contract with Sony Music. But Manhattan Supreme Court judge Shirley Kornreich denied a preliminary injunction that would have allowed the singer to escape the Sony agreement.

The preliminary injunction was rejected on the basis that Sony has offered to arrange collaborations with other producers, a deal Kesha refused. On Monday, attorney Mark Geragos intensified efforts to break the Sony contract with an appeal, which reportedly commences this weekend.

As for now, it’s uncertain whether Kesha is just simply writing music in the hopes of getting release, or whether she’s ultimately open to Sony Music’s offer to coordinate collaborations with other producers. As for Dr. Luke, the embattled producer has been critical of not only the singer and her allegations, but the massive distractions from the hard work of hitting the studio and making good music.

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Does Boycotting Spotify Work?

Over the past year, a growing number of artists have decided to withhold their music from Spotify. But is it working?

Boycotting Spotify isn’t a new thing, though the arrival of premium-only streaming services Apple Music and Tidal is making the decision easier. These new streaming platforms gave artists choice, and more importantly, greater certainty of a guaranteed, higher per-stream royalty rate.

Spotify, by contrast, has two different base royalty rates: an ad-supported payout (which is low) and a premium payout (which is better). The arrival of Apple Music and Tidal ushered in something different: a single, higher rate from paying fans. As a result, it’s unsurprising that artists are favoring these streaming sites over Spotify.

But, does excluding an album from Spotify have any impact on the success of the album or the revenue that it earns?

The Premium Factor.

On one hand, limiting an album’s availability limits potential streams, which in turn theoretically results in lower revenue. But on the other hand, excluding a free tier forces music fans to pay for what they listen to. That math is really simple: the artist generally earns more on Apple Music and Tidal, as these services offer a far higher per royalty rate than Spotify’s ad-supported version. And, typically beat Spotify’s ‘blended rate’.

So why not push fans to greener, better-paying pastures?

The Album Factor.

There’s also the negative impact on album sales to consider, especially as the metrics for recognizing an album’s success have changed. Last month, the RIAA announced that streams would count towards Gold and Platinum album status, making the number of streams a determining factor in the success of an album. Skipping Spotify could mean fewer streams, which means it could be more difficult to get a Gold or Platinum status.

But the RIAA isn’t king, and not everyone is following the decree. After the RIAA announcement, Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly album instantaneously became platinum, and Anthony Tiffith, CEO of Lamar’s label, said

”We don’t stand behind this [RIAA] bs. Ole skool [sic] rules apply, 1 million albums sold is platinum.”

All of which begs the question: does getting a ‘platinum’ status mean anything to the artist anymore? The victory means less, the trophy itself is less respected. And the money is almost always smaller. Streaming has definitely dampened the glory of the ol’ album.

The Chart Factor.

Chart placement is also affected by the sum of streaming numbers. Could boycotting Spotify lessen the chances of getting a number one? Apparently not: artists are still gaining massive success without Spotify. Gwen Stefani withheld her latest album from Spotify and is set for a number 1 charting album. A few weeks back, The 1975 skipped Spotify and bagged themselves a number one album across several countries.

And that doesn’t even include Adele and Taylor Swift, both of whom boycotted Spotify entirely on multiple number one albums.

But, there’s no real way to know whether excluding an album from Spotify affects revenue or success, because you can’t directly compare the results of both scenarios. There’s no A|B testing, only your gut instinct.

The Piracy Factor.

Then, there’s this: by limiting an album’s distribution to paid services, fans are forced to pay for music. That also forces them into the direction of pirating sites. Take Kanye for example: he limited the release of his The Life Of Pablo album to Tidal, which resulted in half a million illegal downloads on the first day.

The Size Factor: does boycotting Spotify work for smaller, unsigned artists?

Probably not, simply because smaller artists don’t have the global fan base enjoyed by superstars. Most smaller, unsigned artists rely upon platforms like Spotify to showcase their work. Also, it’s a way for listeners to discover their music. That’s a critical first step for developing artists, and there’s little reason for an up-and-coming artist to limit the availability of their music.

It’s also another revenue stream, however insignificant the streaming royalty payout is. Something is better than nothing in the initial stages, just like some awareness is better than obscurity.

(Image by free stocks.org, Creative Commons, Public Domain Dedication, cc0 1.0 Universal)

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After Skipping Spotify, Gwen Stefani Gets a Number One Album

Earlier this week, DMN reported that Gwen Stefani had excluded her latest album from Spotify. Now, she has a number one album.

Stefani released her album, ‘This Is What The Truth Feels Like,’ on March 18th. The album was released across a variety of platforms, but Spotify didn’t make the cut. The reason for the exclusion is Spotify’s free, ad-supported version, which substantially deteriorates artist royalties.

Stefani spoke out in a video interview with LinkedIn, arguing against a ‘massive devaluation’ is music over the past 20 years. A big part of that devaluation is due to the uprise of streaming, and more specifically, free streaming.

Stefani is not the first to do this, and she’s probably not the last. In fact, she’s now the latest in a string of high-profile artists to boycott Spotify and subsequently land a top-charting album.

A growing number of artists now share the view that music streaming services that allow fans to listen to their music for free, like Spotify, collectively devalue music. Many of those artists are opting to release on paid-only streaming platforms, like Apple or Tidal. Neither Apple nor Tidal offer a free tier, outside of limited trials.

Stefani is now cruising towards a number one album, according to Billboard.

(Image by Louis Quintana Barney, Creative Commons, Attribution 2.0 Generic, cc by 2.o)

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