Changes: Facebook Hides Content, Pinterest Pins Soundcloud, iTunes Changes Cover Art Size
As certain web services become a key part of our lives in the music industry, seemingly small changes take on greater importance. A glitch at Facebook reminds us that those in Facebook's house will live by Facebook's rules. SoundCloud continues to connect with new partners as Pinterest expands postable content. iTunes plans changes to the minimum size of music cover art. Tragedies? Opportunities? It all depends on where you're situated.
Facebook Hides Content
A glitch at Facebook initially looked like the first signs of another problematic change for music marketers but turned out to be a bug Facebook soon fixed:
"Users who visit fan pages without being signed into Facebook will not be able to see any details on a page’s Timeline besides a login dialog. However, when users enter their email and password, they are redirected to News Feed, not the page they originally landed on."
My initial reaction was that Facebook was making a mistake but that it was yet another move that was designed to make FB a world of its own. It also appeared to be a move that would reduce the free marketing value of Facebook as they attempt to grow their ads.
When Facebook removed linking to apps as landing pages, many were reminded that Facebook is a capricious overlord in a walled garden. For a moment yesterday we received another such reminder.
Pinterest Pins SoundCloud
Recent SoundCloud partnerships seem to be a positive opportunity for musicians. Twitter recently included SoundCloud in its expanded tweets program. Now Pinterest is including SoundCloud in the media sources that can be pinned:
"When you pin a sound on Pinterest, it’s artwork will be displayed alongside your other pins, and the SoundCloud HTML5 widget will launch when the pin is clicked, perfect for listening whilst you browse. Shared sounds are fully attributed, and link back to their page on SoundCloud, so creators will always be credited."
Smart for Pinterest in that the content is designed to be shared but more significant for SoundCloud, especially with the news from Twitter, as it continues its move towards becoming an indispensable piece of the web's music infrastructure.
iTunes Changing Cover Art Size
News (or rumors) are circulating that Apple will be changing minimum requirements for iTunes music cover art and podcast cover art. Music cover art is said to be changing to a minimum 1400 x 1400 pixels beginning in August. Podcast art to 1200 x 1200.
I can't find an official statement but Cult of Mac is reporting that Apple is setting new minimum art sizes for apps at 1024 x 1024. This is said to be due to higher resolution in newer iPads.
It's unclear what the implications of not updating your cover art might be but the post on podcast cover art claims that it's not required but that podcasts with less than minimum art will not be featured. So updating your art may be a good idea given the potential for unexpected penalties.
If you have a link to more solid sources regarding iTunes cover art, please share.
Hypebot Senior Contributor Clyde Smith blogs about business at Flux Research: Business Changes and about dance at All World Dance: News. To suggest topics for Hypebot, contact: clyde(at)fluxresearch(dot)com.
