Content providers are at a crossroads in the evolution of narratives online. Users are increasingly accessing content in ways that break the conventions of
how stories should be told and articles delivered. Social channels are working to help content reach more people quicker than ever before, but these same
viral mechanics mean that information often becomes disembodied and out of context. Publishers must also recognize that content is no longer static, and
that instead the story only begins when the “post” button is pressed.
There's a lot of talk about how Apple is building
a whiz-bang, streaming Internet radio app to kill Pandora. In 2013, Internet radio seems really shortsighted for Apple. It can't possibly be the only thing
they're up to in the music space.
Let's explore this further: 1) Apple has sold something like 300 million total iOS devices, 2) Apple won patents recently called
"iGroups" and one about "ad
hoc networking based on content and location," 3) Apple has punted on social to date, 4) Apple has largely failed to innovate their music products since
iTunes and the iPod, and 5) Let’s not forget, Apple doesn't like to lose.
(UPDATED) Sonicbids, one of the first major players in the d.i.y. music space, has been sold to Backstage in a deal backed by Guggenheim Partners. Backstage, which specializes in casting, auditions and entertainment industry
opportunities, will now add Sonicbids' electronic marketing tools and performance opportunities for musicians.
Robert Scoble is one of Silicon Valley’s most respected bloggers and tech evangelists, with a role as startup liaison officer at Rackspace Hosting, and a famous enthusiasm for seeking out new and interesting startups and technologies.
He took the stage today at Midem for a presentation on ‘Music in the Age of Context’, in which he outlined some of the new technology that’s exciting him, how it’s all weaving together, and what it may mean for musicians and the music industry.
At Bandzoogle, we often talk about the “Hub & Spokes” method to drive traffic to your website using your social media profiles. The root of the “Hub & Spokes” concept is really about interacting with your fans and using all the tools available in a cohesive strategy that will create more awareness about you and your music.
I love music and the music industry.I’m a geek about doing the work and love working with artists to help achieve goals and build sustainable careers.
As an artist manager and consultant, I work with or create new teams around each artist on our roster. I love working with specialists within our field who know the synch world in and out, or are focused on how modern PR is evolving, or are seizing the exciting changes within the touring industry from live-streaming concerts (Bowery Presents) to pre-selling tickets (Songkick’s Detour).
Good publicity takes a lot of time and a lot of money… At least it is supposed to. It is supposed to require skilled publicists and promoters pounding the phones and bombarding the inboxes of every blog, radio station, magazine, newspaper and talk show to cobble together enough exposure to successfully launch a new artist’s first single, elevating them above the noise, breaking them into the competitive fold of popular culture’s elite. In most cases that’s what it takes, but in Carly Rae Jepsen’s case it took one tweet.
There has been a lot of debate over streaming services and the royalty rates they pay. Critics point to royalties from services like Spotify, where it
takes 200 streams to earn the equivalent of one download, as evidence that these services don’t provide a viable income for artists.
We last reported on BeatStars back in June,
and since then, the company has seen a good amount of traction. The music production licensing platform has now partnered with leading digital distribution
company INgrooves Fontana, giving songwriters and producers on the platform a
presence on Ingrooves’ Client Console.
This partnership gives INgrooves' label and artist partners
direct access to BeatStars production services and artists.
With a backdrop of the radio royalty wars raging in Washington, The Future Of Music Coalition is digging deeper into the data derived from it's Artist Revenue Streams project in an effort to debunk the often held popular myth of the rich and easy life of the professional musicians.
Guest post by Sagee Ben-Zedeff(@sageeb) for sidewinder.fm, a music and tech think tank. Ben-Zedeff is the founder and CEO of Serendip Media.
Three months ago, Nielsen published one of my favorite reports of the year, Music 360. It’s a
rather comprehensive, in-depth study of consumer interaction with music in the US. The results this year didn't surprise me, and shouldn't surprise anyone
who has followed the behavioral trends around online music consumption in the last few years. However, I know many people were quite surprised.
Guest post by Kyle Bylin of sidewinder.fm, a music and tech think tank.
Billboard has doubled down on a particularly dangerous idea. In the trade publication’s annual FutureSound white paper, it proclaims that music discovery
is “The Key To Digital Fortune.” This is, at best, egregious hyperbole, and, at worst, complete mystification. Senior correspondent Alex Pham, who wrote
this section of the paper, concedes that enabling listeners to discover music is “much harder than it seems, as evidenced by the numerous efforts” and that
such “efforts” have been largely fraught with “trial and error” for more than a decade. But Pham fails to question the promise of music discovery and why
it’s likely to never be fulfilled, let alone, address why music discovery is being championed as “The Key To Digital Fortune” in the first place. It’s
clear that little thought went into this headline and that it has almost nothing to do with the reportage that follows, which is fine. But if the
ostensible magazine of record wants to go out on a limb, it should notice that limb has already broken.
Music discovery and
social platform OurStage.com has announced OurStage Pro, a new
membership service that pays artists for song spins through a rather unique
revenue sharing program. Pro allows artists to get paid when fans listen to their music on OurStage.com,
on their own site, or on social media. For $2 dollars per month, artists become
OurStage Pro members and begin promoting their music on the website and through
an embeddable player provided by the company to monetize their work.
I would never presume to be able to provide truly valuable insight into the values and philosophies that shaped the business models of the music industry
from previous decades. I simply do not know enough about it. And today, there are many areas of the industry that I would not be qualified to give a
keynote speech about, such as copyright law, or royalty rate negotiations for online radio. Despite this, I am asked almost daily to answer questions
regarding the state of our current industry, and make forecasts as to what I believe the future holds. It’s a fun question... but divination is a risky
business.
Guest post by Kyle Bylin of sidewinder.fm, a music and tech think tank.
A decade into the digital music revolution, it’s remarkable that we can create radio stations that we can customize to our taste and stream tens of millions of songs. You would be forgiven, however, if you hoped that these online music services did much else. Of course, it could be argued that a “good” experience is characterized by great recommendations and the flawless playback of music. You could even say that a “good” experience is delivered when a complex problem is solved by a simple product.
(UPDATED) By David Macias, president of Nashville based label services company Thirty
Tigers.
Much of the recent discourse about the music business reminds me of listening to partisan political commentators talk about America. There are a lot of conspiracy theories and misguided notions that perpetuate the worst stereotypes about a group of people. I am writing to defend the honor of Spotify and the music business, or at least some of it, by looking at the facts about what Spotify pays the owners of recordings.
MyMusic aims to create an online music magazine, but it’s unclear as to who the readers and subscribers should be. The site offers the ability to bookmark
content to be stored inside of a “Magazine” that others can easily browse. Dedicated fans can share important or buzz-worthy music items with his or her
friends and followers.
(UPDATED) When Macklemore & Ryan Lewis's album debuted at #1 on the iTunes album chart last month, it offered hope to other DIY artists. The duo's now legendary hustle offers a DIY music roadmap: maintain control of your career while you build a fanbase and in-house team. In this first of a two part series, Amber Horsburgh, MTV digital strategist, offers a graphic look at the duo's success. Shes also sharing her research in a free online Skillshare class: Build an Audience: A Macklemore Case Study in Music Marketing.
Topspin, Artist Growth, Firebrand, INgrooves Fontana and PledgeMusic announced a strategic partnership at today's FutureSound conference designed to offer established musicians a suite of
services for funding, distribution, marketing and commerce. Together the companies hope to guide projects from funding
through to retail, including direct-to-consumer packages and live shows.
Smartphones have changed nearly every aspect of our lives. They have become the personal assistant and digital companion that keeps us punctual, social,
and sane. Still, these devices don't quite shine until we push them - manually launching apps and inputting information.
Today from 9AM - 5PM ET, The Future Of Music Coalition is hosting its 11th Future of Music Summit in Washington, DC. It's sold out, but we'll be live streaming it here live on Hypebot all day and jumping in with our own questions and comments. You can get involved as well. Speakers include Senator Ron Wyden, Pandora’s Tim Westergren and panels covering everything from webcasting rates to arts funding.Watch The Future Of Music Summit live now:
Indie rock band 30 Seconds to Mars is no stranger to technology, innovation, and fan interaction. With the creation of The Summit, a band
hosted gathering, fans were given the chance to record their vocals to be used on 2009's This is War. Thousands of fans participated, and their
faces were captured and used as alternate album covers upon the CD’s release. After this success, the band looked for a way to offer fans continued
interaction without the need of physical attendance. This goal led frontman Jared Leto to create the social streaming site VyRT.com.
Universal Music and FBT Productions told a California Federal Court that a settlement has been reached in their legal battle over how digital royalties were calculated on early Eminem recordings. The deal, which comes prior to the damages phase of the case, ends one of the mostly closely watched trials in the music industry. Exactly how the secret settlement will effect dozens of similar pending lawsuits is unclear.
Guest post by Kyle Bylin of sidewinder.fm, a music and tech think tank.
As Spotify moves from the fringes of the tech crowd to the mainstream market, it’s worth reflecting on how the online music service has changed the way many of us listen to music.
Not long ago, we went to great lengths to seek out and purchase albums for our collections. Now, we simply search for an artist on Spotify and add their
entire discography to our library. With a single click, we can listen to their songs and not have to wait for a video to buffer or a download to complete.
Rather than collect our favorite songs with diligent care, we capture them using the “Like” button with pure ease.
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