This is why Apple wants to launch iRadio
People still buy a lot of music downloads, and most of them use iTunes to do so. That’s why Apple is now building its own streaming service. Read more »
Panasonic Automotive buys streaming radio firm Aupeo
The deal – the financial terms of which remain a mystery – is important for both the connected industry and the Berlin start-up scene, which has long been holding out for a big exit. Read more »
Spotify hits 6 million paid users as market for music streaming heats up
A report shows that music subscription service Spotify continues to grow at a rapid pace. The growth validates Spotify’s business model but is also inviting a growing cluster of rivals. Read more at paidContent »
Rdio expands global footprint, Spotify reportedly extends free mobile offering
photo: Shutterstock / Smith
Rdio is coming to Austria, Ireland, Italy and four other countries. Spotify, meanwhile, plans to offer free mobile radio around the world. Read more at paidContent »
Pandora Chairman and CEO to step down, search for successor begins
Pandora’s CEO Joe Kennedy is leaving the company after a fiscal quarter that saw both growing revenue and big losses. Kennedy will stay on until a successor is named. Read more »
Pandora caps monthly free tunes on mobiles to 40 hours
Addicted to Pandora’s free music service on your mobile phone? If the music cuts out, here’s why: Mobiles will be capped at 40 hours per month although you can pay a buck to keep on rockin’. Read more »
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Connected consumer fourth-quarter 2012 analysis
In the fourth quarter, the traditional pay-TV industry began to show signs of severe internal stresses after having held off the immediate challenge of over-the-top video. Meanwhile the music industry fell into an internal battle over performance royalties. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Music site This Is My Jam could spin out from Echo Nest
A year after it launched as a skunkworks project inside music data company The Echo Nest, trendy social music site This Is My Jam is “looking at options” for going independent — as well as getting ready to launch some fun new site exploration features. Read more »
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How consumer media will change in 2013
Many of the biggest stories in the connected consumer space occurred mostly offstage in 2012, from Apple’s new media services to policymakers in Washington. Overall, the past 12 months have laid important groundwork for significant advances in the connected consumer space. The year 2013 should be eventful. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Pandora founder: Spotify “not fundamentally competitive” with radio peer
As Spotify and Pandora both look to achieve dominance in internet music streaming, Pandora founder TIm Westergren said Thursday at Stanford’s campus that he sees the two companies as offering fundamentally different products, even as Spotify looks to compete. Read more »
What the Last.fm founders did next: scrobble the web
Last.fm ‘scrobbled’ your music tastes in order to recommend tunes you may not have heard. Co-founders Felix Miller and Martin Stiksel, who have since moved on, reckon their new service, Lumi, can do the same for general web content. Read more »
7 stories to read this weekend
Reporting in Mexico is a tough job that can get you killed. In Hollywood, you don’t know who is reading your email. And why do indie musicians hate Pandora and Spotify? These and more stories are on my recommended list of stories to read this weekend. Read more »
Data isn’t just the new oil, it’s the new money. Ask Zoë Keating
photo: Flickr / eschipul
In the fight about royalties from streaming media services like Pandora, Popular cellist Zoë Keating says she’s willing to give up the money in exchange for data. It’s an idea that’s gaining traction elsewhere, too, as more companies are paying consumers for their truly valuable data. Read more »
Pandora releases Android app update with lyrics and social features
Pandora’s Android users don’t have to wait any longer for features that were rolled out on iOS last month: The new Pandora Android app brings social sharing, activity feeds and lyrics to Android-based mobile phones. An Android tablet app is planned for a future release date. Read more »
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Connected consumer third-quarter 2012
The third quarter saw many parts of the traditional media business in flux. Other developments included the rollout of new device-based content ecosystems, red flags and red ink for traditional consumer electronics makers, and a resurgence of consumer purchases of movies. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
How to design for the ears
Pandora’s CTO Tom Conrad talks to us about designing for the ears, as part of the book we’re creating for our RoadMap conference, which will take place on November 5th in San Francisco, and will focus on design in the age of connectedness. Read more »
Tim Westergren: Some artists make over $2 million with Pandora
Pandora’s founder Tim Westergren tried to do away with the notion that there is no money in streaming music by revealing that some musicians have made $2 million with Pandora’s streaming service. The data comes at a time when Pandora is looking for better royalty rates Read more »
Pandora now works on 600 different consumer devices
Pandora, the streaming music company wants to replace the traditional radio with its Internet-based music service. And in order to do that, it is embedding itself into many devices and in cars that would come with built in Internet connectivity, CEO Joe Kennedy said recently. Read more »
The Apple Roundup: Look at the effect iOS 6 had on App Store traffic
Here’s our daily pick of stories about Apple from around the web that you shouldn’t miss. Today’s installment: App Store traffic goes through the roof, alternatives to Apple maps, Retina support finally comes to Office, yet another patent troll targets Apple, and more. Read more »
Why Apple would want to move into music streaming
With the popularity of Spotify, Pandora and others, Apple probably wants to find a way to keep its customers from wandering outside its ecosystem just because it has no cloud-based music streaming service. Attitudes are changing about owning media, which Apple must recognize. Read more »
Silicon Valley tech boom is inflating rents… by a lot
San Francisco red-hot startup activity is not only inflating the commercial real estate market, but it is also having an impact on the residential rental market, data shows. Since January 2011 annual rents are up by $5000, but down in Peninsula, rents are up even higher. Read more »
paidContent turns 10: A brief history of digital media
Remember when Friendster was the hot social network, publishers doubted that ebooks would ever sell, and Netflix thought DVDs in red envelopes was the future? We do — that was that state of digital media when paidContent launched in 2002. Read more »
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The evolution of consumer-media cloud storage
Cloud-based storage and cross-device syncing of media content are two of the most competitive areas in consumer IT. Apple, Google and Amazon see cloud-based media services both as a way to increase attachment to their platforms and a means to extend and amplify their broader strategic goals. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Mobile’s newest star Songza is red hot with 1.15 Million iOS downloads in 10 days
Songza launched in 2007, and put to rest a year later. In 2011, it was reincarnated as a mobile music discovery service and a mobile app. By marrying algorithms with human curation, the service wants to challenge Pandora and others in battle for music-app supremacy. Read more »
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Who and what to watch in the new era of the living room
The adoption of tablets, social media and new interfaces and the changing nature of the TV itself mean the digital living room will continue on its path of rapid change, thanks to new ways of creating, viewing, bundling, distributing and selling content. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
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How social discovery is transforming entertainment
In this busy new world of multiple social networks and recommendations tools, the discovery process itself is being disrupted by innovation and by the changing ways in which consumers now interact online. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Spotify may add Pandora-like radio service
photo: Rasmus Andersson
Spotify is reportedly working on a Pandora-like radio service that would launch by the end of the year. Read more at paidContent »
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Hyperlocal: opportunities for publishers and developers
Hyperlocal mobile advertising is at a critical juncture: Leading analysts predict that mobile ad spending will increase by more than five times between 2011 and 2015. But what are the forces at play, and how effective are HyLoMo ads? Read more at GigaOM Pro »
What do Yelp and Twitter have in common?
Today, Yelp had a spectacular initial public offering and is worth almost a billion dollars. There is more talk of a Twitter IPO and that too would be spectacular. But one thing in common between these two companies – a propensity for airbrushing the past. Read more »
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The problems with app-based billing for data
This week AT&T floated a plan to enable app developers to pay for the data that subscribers use in their apps. The model might resonate with some developers and subscribers, but it is likely to create more problems than it ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
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Facebook’s IPO filing: ideas and implications
This report outlines the myriad issues at play in Facebook’s move, from examining how CEO Mark Zuckerberg wants to rewire the world to understanding the company’s infrastructure dependency. But from every angle, it’s clear the effects will ripple throughout the startup and tech communities. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
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Forecast: the future of the digital music industry
New entrants are pushing alternative business models in the music industry. Though this evolution will take time, the overall industry should return to growth within the five-year forecast horizon, as digital music spending, driven by subscriptions, will average double-digit yearly growth to total $4.1 billion in 2015. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Music fans meet Raditatz, Pandora for your neighborhood
A new Pandora competitor called Raditaz combines customized online radio stations with location. Users can see what stations others are listening to in their neighborhood and even geotag stations specific to their gym or office. Raditaz built the service with a team of just seven. Read more »
Forget gas: Pioneer fills your car with mobile apps
Pioneer’s new $599 AppRadio2, a smart, 7-inch capacitive touch display radio supports both iOS and Android phones. It includes an external GPS, rear-camera input, and of course, smartphones with compatible apps. Looks like a great way to get Pandora, Waze, or Rdio integrated with your car! Read more »
5 absolute last-minute gifts for Apple lovers on your list
The children were nestled all snug in their beds, while visions of disappointment ran through your head because you waited until the very very last minute to buy gifts. Here are some options for gifts that while thoughtful, don’t require you to meet shipping deadlines. Read more »
Feds say you should stop texting (and talking) while driving
The National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday recommended that states ban all driver use of cell phones and other portable electronic devices, except in emergencies. What will this mean for connected cars, Pandora and the dying GPS market if states decide to get tough? Read more »
Spotify puts Pandora in its sights with new Spotify Radio
Spotify is relaunching its Spotify Radio feature, enabling unlimited channels and skipping and more targeted channels in a bid to better take on Pandora. The improvements are limited to the desktop for now, but a mobile version is coming soon. Read more »
Topforty.it turns Twitter into a DJ
Hey Mister DJ, turn the tweet hits up: Topforty.it is using Twitter’s collective music favorites to come up with daily music charts. Each and every song is playable through YouTube embeds, and the site is already working on plans to launch genre-specific Twitter radio stations. Read more »
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Going social: Recommendations engines need to factor in consumer reviews
Ebay’s recent purchase of Hunch illustrates how social media has leveled the playing field for e-commerce recommendations engines. Mixing human-powered reviews with algorithm-powered recommendations will be a key driver of social ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Music startups test their mettle in Europe
Brightcove VP Rags Gupta explains why music start-ups should test the waters across the pond before coming to the U.S.: “According to conventional wisdom, consumer start-ups should move to San Francisco for access to capital, talent, and ideas. But if you’re launching an online music company, consider London or Berlin.” Read more »
