Streaming
Universal Music Group & Tencent Music Launch New Label in China
Universal Music Group and Tencent Music Entertainment Group (TME) are strengthening their ties with a new joint venture music label that will develop, produce and showcase Chinese artists, the companies announced Monday (Aug. 10). The news came with announcements UMG had reached a multi-year licensing extension with Tencent, as well as a new multi-year licensing deal with Chinese streaming platform NetEase Cloud Music. Under the renewed agreement between Tencent and UMG — first signed in May 2017 — Tencent will continue to distribute UMG content on its associated streaming platforms QQ Music, Kogou Music and Kuwo Music, as well as the karaoke platform WeSing. {“nid”:”9399541″,”type”:”post”,”title”:”Universal Musi...
Musicians Criticize Jeff Bezos’ ‘Willful Blindness’ to Twitch Music Royalties
While testifying at a congressional hearing late last month, Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos admitted that he wasn’t sure whether or not the company pays royalties for the music users stream on Amazon-owned livestreaming platform Twitch (it doesn’t). His response angered artist-run non-profit Artist Rights Alliance, which has sent a letter to Bezos challenging him to pay artists their fair share, as music streaming on Twitch continues to surge. “We were appalled […] by your inability or unwillingness to answer even the most basic question about Twitch’s practices in this regard,” the letter reads. “As Twitch uses music to grow its audience and shape its brand, the company owes creators more than the willful blindness and vague platitudes you offered du...
Appeal Ruling on Publisher Royalty Rate Hike Looks Like it Favors Digital Services Contentions: Sources
Spotify, Amazon, Pandora and YouTube have been handed a procedural victory on their appeal to a 44% royalty rate increase for songwriters and publishers, sources tell Billboard. The U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C. that reviewed the digital services’ appeal on the Copyright Royalty Board’s (CRB) mechanical rate determination has thrown out the rate structure cobbled together by a majority of the board’s three judges, Billboard has learned. The ruling, which is under seal, could wash away the rate increase that the CRB judges — in a split 2–1 decision — had awarded songwriters and music publishers in January 2018. The CRB ruling was finalized in February 2019 and appealed by digital services a month later on grounds of procedural issues with how the CRB determined...
Digital Services’ Appeal of Publisher Rate Hike Headed Back to Copyright Royalty Board: Sources
The U.S. Court of Appeals reviewing an appeal from Spotify, Amazon, Pandora and YouTube over the Copyright Royalty Board’s mechanical rate determination has remanded the case back to the CRB, sources tell Billboard. At press time the decision was sealed, so industry sources weren’t clear on what issues the Washington, D.C. Circuit Appeals Court had with the CRB rate ruling, other than it apparently was due to procedural issues. But procedural issues were at the heart of the digital services’ appeal and, at its most extreme, this could mean the ruling vacated the process that yielded a 44% rate increase for publisher royalties. {“nid”:”8502707″,”type”:”post”,”title”:”Why Spotify's Appeal of The CRB Rate Decision Is A Hug...
Digital Media Company LiveXLive Had an OK Quarter, But It’s Got a Long Way to Go
What three letters best explain the modest gains LiveXLive unveiled during its quarterly earnings call Thursday? The would be P-P-P as in the Paycheck Protection Program. Nearly all of the company’s $3.5 million reduction in spending for the quarter appeared to have come from the almost $2 million federal loan it received in March, coupled with $1.4 million in reductions of employee salaries and other expenses during the COVID-19 pandemic. That helped LiveXLive achieve its “best quarter in the history of the company,” according to CEO and chairman Rob Ellin, who reported a 11% increase in revenue and a quarterly loss of $7.5 million, or $0.13 per share. That missed the consensus estimate of a loss of $0.12, but marked a significant improvement from a loss of $0.21 per share a year ago (tot...
Inside Pollen, the Mysterious Hit Spotify Playlist Where No Rules Apply
In mid-2018, a team of Spotify employees were preparing a new, genre-less playlist — one of the first of its kind for the streaming service, which was shaking up the industry with its hit-making hip-hop playlist RapCaviar. But they couldn’t decide on a title and cover design that would encompass the playlist’s eclectic sound without putting a box around it. “It was an eight-month saga,” Spotify North America team lead of music culture & editorial John Stein now remembers with a chuckle — until Spotify then-creative director Cecilia Azcarate began playing around with intricate, anatomical drawings of the insides of flowers. “The word ‘pollen’ was thrown around, and we all liked how symmetrical it felt,” Stein says. “There’s a c...
Google Play Music To Shut Down in December
The time has come for Google Play Music to play dead. The one-time streaming platform is being shut down permanently in December in favor of YouTube Music. This merger between the two Alphabet-owned companies has been in the works since 2017, as Google Play floundered while YouTube became one of… Please click the link below to read the full article. Google Play Music To Shut Down in December Wren Graves You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of Internet revenue.
Pandemic Exacts Toll on Sony’s Music Operations With Double-Digit Revenue Drop
In the company’s fiscal first quarter ended June 30, Sony’s music operations showed the wear and tear of the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, with revenue declining 13.1% to ¥173.735 billion yen ($1.646 billion) from 2019’s first quarter revenue of ¥200.04 billion ($1.84 billion). While operating profit was also down to ¥34.89 billion ($325.3 million), the decline on a percentage basis wasn’t as much, coming in 8.8% down from the ¥38.3 billion ($348 million) tallied in the year earlier first quarter period. Consequently, the company’s already healthy operating margin showed a slight improvement, consisting of 19.7% of revenue this year, versus 18.9% in 2019’s first quarter, which shows the company kept a tight rein on expenses. During t...
Best Movies and TV Shows Streaming on Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, HBO Max, and Amazon Prime in August 2020
Life moves pretty fast, to borrow from Ferris Bueller, that’s why there’s no room for skimming. Consequence of Sound doesn’t want any of that for you (or for themselves), which is why they’ve rounded up the greatest hits of all the major streaming networks. Granted, we’ve already shown you everything… Please click the link below to read the full article. Best Movies and TV Shows Streaming on Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, HBO Max, and Amazon Prime in August 2020 Michael Roffman You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give us...
Oh, Snap: Snapchat Owner Lands Music Licensing Deals to Bring Songs to Posts
Snap, Inc. has secured licensing deals with several major music companies to incorporate music into posts on its photo- and video-sharing app Snapchat, the company confirmed today (Aug. 3). Snapchat users will soon be able to add music to their posts both pre- and post-capture, from a catalogue including music licensed from Warner Music Group and its publishing arm, Warner Chappell; Universal Music Publishing Group, members of the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) and indie digital rights agency Merlin. The new feature is now testing in New Zealand and Australia, as Bloomberg first reported, and will reach global users this fall. “We’re constantly building on our relationships within the music industry, and making sure the entire music ecosystem (artists, labels, songwrite...
Tune In: Code Orange, Fleshgod Apocalypse, and Between the Buried and Me to Perform Livestream Concerts
Metal bands continue to make the best of the live music pause, taking to streaming platforms to perform for fans while social distancing. Code Orange, Fleshgod Apocalypse, and Between the Buried and Me will all perform upcoming livestream concerts, joining other acts who’ve begun hosting similar virtual shows. Code Orange… Please click the link below to read the full article. Tune In: Code Orange, Fleshgod Apocalypse, and Between the Buried and Me to Perform Livestream Concerts Jon Hadusek You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back ...
Microsoft Exploring TikTok Acquisition
Microsoft said Sunday (Aug. 2) that it would continue to explore an acquisition of TikTok after discussing the matter with President Donald Trump. The statement follows Trump’s Friday evening comments to reporters that he would take action as soon as Saturday to ban the app over national security concerns. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella spoke to Trump over the weekend, the company disclosed. “Microsoft fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President’s concerns,” reads part of the company’s statement. “It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury.” {“nid”:”9428152″,”type”:”...
