R.I.P. - Charlie Gillett: broadcaster and journalist
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Charlie Gillett was a broadcaster, journalist and author who played a significant role in shaping the tastes of several generations of music fans. After writing The Sound of the City, one of the first books to attempt a serious survey of the early history of rock'n'roll, he began his broad.. .. read more..
New Business Model for Magnatune
Friday, March 19, 2010
Magnatune relaunched itself today with a new business model. We're now in the no-limits membership business. Why the change? Simply put: membership today accounts for 74% of our revenue. Over the past two years our album download sales have declined while the unlimited downloads memberships hav.. .. read more..
Producer files $30M suit against Lady Gaga in NYC
Friday, March 19, 2010
A songwriter and music producer who claims he helped launch pop star Lady Gaga says she squeezed him out of her lucrative career after he co-wrote some of her songs, came up with her stage name and helped get her record deal. Rob Fusari filed a $30.5 million lawsuit against the Grammy Award-winning .. .. read more..
The demise of the music industry is visible everywhere but in the facts
Friday, March 19, 2010
It is easy to make the case that the music industry, far from imploding, is one of the great success stories of the recession. The most dramatic example of this is in what kids are supposed not to be buying any more: single tracks. Last year sales of singles soared to an all-time UK record of 152.7m.. .. read more..
The 1st Musician to Make Amazing Use of Chat Roulette
Friday, March 19, 2010
Have you heard of Chat Roulette? It's the latest web site to create a major buzz in a very short period of time. In a nutshell, Chat Roulette allows anyone with a webcam to log on and randomly be connected live with other people on the site one by one. If you don't like who you're con.. .. read more..
eMusic Adds Subscriber Rewards Program
Friday, March 19, 2010
At SXSW Wednesday, eMusic debuted a new A+R (Access + Rewards) program that gives U.S. members exclusive offers and discounts. In addition to their eMusic subscription members now get special access to selected clubs and festivals, opportunities to connect with artists, deals on music hardware acces.. .. read more..
Nasdaq Warns Sirius of Possible Delisting
Friday, March 19, 2010
It was inevitable, really. Having given up the gains that pushed its shares past $1 and failed to close over that threshold for 10 straight days by March 15, Sirius XM invited a delisting notice. And Wednesday afternoon, Nasdaq gave it one, warning that the company's shares have fallen out of c.. .. read more..
The Orchard Launches Comprehensive Analytics Tool
Friday, March 19, 2010
The analytics tool was developed in-house by The Orchard's technology team and is available in English, Spanish and French. It transforms daily and weekly sales data generated by stores into easy to understand sales figures viewable by type of transaction, time period, and location. The tool di.. .. read more..
Pandora: These Numbers May Surprise You
Friday, March 19, 2010
The bigger Pandora gets, the bigger its royalty bill, a variable cost structure that makes it difficult for many content-based businesses to scale. Pandora is a serious chunk of total SoundExchange royalty revenues from online radio. Despite all of the wrangling over non-interactive royalties on rec.. .. read more..
UMG To Launch U.S. Pricing Test
Friday, March 19, 2010
The Universal Music Group could rewrite U.S. music pricing when it tests a new frontline pricing structure, which is designed to get single CDs in stores at $10, or below. Beginning in the second quarter and continuing through most of the year, the company's Velocity program will test lower CD .. .. read more..
Gene Simmons\' NGTV Files for Bankruptcy
Friday, March 19, 2010
Online celebrity news and entertainment site No Good TV (NGTV), backed by entertainment industry veterans including company chairman Gene Simmons, also of the rock band KISS, and Al Cafaro, music industry veteran and former chairman and CEO of A&M Records, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection .. .. read more..
Influential Big Star member Alex Chilton dies
Thursday, March 18, 2010
As the teenage singer for the pop-soul outfit the Box Tops, Chilton topped the charts with the band's song 'The Letter' in 1967. Their other hits were 'Soul Deep' and 'Cry Like a Baby.' Chilton grew up in Memphis and formed the band with friends from school. His sh.. .. read more..
Topspin Expands Platform, Opens API
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Fan aquisition and monetization platform Topspin used SXSW 2010 to announce the public availability of a suite of APIs that more seamlessly integrates their e-commerce and promotional tools into major website platforms and social networks. The company also recently upgraded their public web site Top.. .. read more..
Who killed the music video star?
Thursday, March 18, 2010
The anticipatory press, the fans champing at the bit for a leaked video still and the premiere during E! News would have been considered par for course in the music industry 10 years ago. But lately, that kind of event has been few and far between. There are a few reasons for that shift, but the mos.. .. read more..
Herb Cohen dies at 77
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Herb Cohen, the tough, litigious manager and label operator who introduced such notables as the Mothers of Invention and Tom Waits during the '60s and '70s, died Tuesday of unknown causes in Napa, Calif. He was 77. After beginning his professional career as an L.A. club booker and operator.. .. read more..