All Entries Tagged With: "Billboard"

GEMA Fails In YouTube Legal Challenge

Wolfgang Spahr reports on the German Performing Rights Society’s ongoing battle with YoutTube…

Aug, 30 2010 0 Comments Full Story

Playing The System

Since I’m currently in Australia I thought it apt to write about a new Australian-based upstart to the music industry, which is causing waves of consternation on a global level. The company in question is called Chartfixer , and as the name suggests, it has come up with a new way to ‘game’ the ARIA [...]

Jun, 07 2010 1 Comments Full Story

That Damned Iceberg

The annual NARM (National Association of Recording Merchandisers) Convention took place last weekend in Chicago. The convention, once the most important event in the music industry, is a pathetic shadow of its former self. Back in the day, for machers like Walter Yetnikoff, Tommy Mottola, Doug Morris and Mo Ostin, attendance was required. Huge stars [...]

May, 19 2010 2 Comments Full Story

YouTube’s German Music Royalty Talks Break Down

Remember 12 months ago, when YouTube, negotiating music rates with European royalty collectors, yanked official music videos from its site in the UK and Germany? By the summer, YouTube had forced the UK’s PRS For Music to halve its on-demand music stream rate, leading to YouTube’s reinstatement. But, in Germany, the GEMA society’s rates have [...]

May, 12 2010 0 Comments Full Story

Will A Revamped Attitude Make Users Reconsider MySpace?

First reported by TechCrunch and later confirmed by Billboard, MySpace’s new slogan is “Discover and be Discovered”. The strategy was reportedly revealed to employees during a meeting last week at the Los Angeles HQ. The meeting, attended by some 600 employees as well as being broadcast to other offices, was most likely a move to [...]

Mar, 02 2010 0 Comments Full Story

Apple Moves Toward Music As Service

For nearly four years, I’ve been evangelizing the transition of the music industry from a product-based business to a service-based economy. I’ve never viewed this as a possible scenario but as the only eventuality. It’s going to happen, it’s got to happen, now maybe sooner than later. With Apple’s acquisition this week of LaLa, the [...]

Dec, 14 2009 12 Comments Full Story

Digging Into The Reserves: Worth Losing The Best Ones First?

Sony has had much reason to celebrate this weekend as Michael Jackson’s rehearsal documentary “This Is It” pulled in $101 million worldwide in its first five days. “This Is It” certainly has a shot to break the record of most successful concert film in the US, currently held by Miley Cyrus’s “The Best of Both [...]

Nov, 03 2009 3 Comments Full Story

Lala: From the Bottom of the Barrel to the Crest of the Wave

The only news of Lala in the past year was WMG’s writing down half of its $20 million investment in the site, grimly citing “lower expectations of digital music sales”. But this week introduced three new prospective projects for the streaming site; an iPhone app and deals with Facebook and Google. Lala could soon be [...]

Oct, 27 2009 3 Comments Full Story

Spotify: Labels Win, Artists Lose?

Spotify only turned a year old this month and yet they have constantly been mentioned in the press for their plans of expansion, from the 3UK/HTC phone to tie-ins with Swedish telco Telia for a possible TV service. Before we get caught up in the fairy tale story though one must ask, for a start-up [...]

Oct, 20 2009 2 Comments Full Story

TMV Video Interview – Robb McDaniels, CEO and Founder – INgrooves

With Robb McDaniels recent Op-Ed in Billboard earlier this week TMV thought it apt to post the video interview we undertook with him a couple of months back. Rob touches on the streaming business models and some of the issues for content owners and distributors to consider. We also get Robb to comment on the [...]

Oct, 14 2009 0 Comments Full Story