Spotify reaches ‘100 million users’ milestone

Music streaming service Spotify has confirmed that its monthly active user base has sailed past the 100 million mark for the first time.

A report by Business Insider said the Swedish app’s user base has pushed into new markets and attained an outstanding statistical growth from 75 million to 100 million, despite facing stiff competition from the likes of Apple Music.

In a statement on Monday (Tuesday in Manila), Spotify officials said they were adding some 1.8 million users to their service every month and that 30% of these were paying subscribers.

Overall, the service now boasts over 30 million new subscribers, while the remaining 70 million users still tune into their free subscription.

Apart from the recent surge in user popularity, the company has also overtaken fellow European startup Skype as the continent’s most promising and highly valued application.

Regardless of its newfound success, the company is reportedly still not making much profit, as evidenced by a 10-percent revenue drop in 2015.

These losses can be chiefly attributed to the payments it makes to music labels, artists and music rights holders, the report said.

Spotify has the music-streaming industry’s biggest paid subscriber base,  but the vast majority still tune in free with commercial breaks.

The company, which was founded in 2006, is still paying 80 percent of its revenue and has not yet shown a profit as it spends to grow internationally. Khristian Ibarrola

source: technology.inquirer.net

Spotify reaches royalty deal with music publishers

NEW YORK—Spotify, the leader in the booming streaming industry, on Thursday reached a settlement to improve royalty payments to US music publishers as the company hopes to avoid potentially costly lawsuits.

The National Music Publishers’ Association, which advocates on behalf of the US houses that hold songwriters’ copyright, announced the deal which relates to songs whose authors have been difficult to identify.

Amid the rapid growth of streaming, which allows unlimited on-demand music, Spotify has faced charges that it paid little attention to ensuring proper payment of royalties, which go both to performers and the often more anonymous songwriters.

Although songwriter credit on modern commercial music is easily obtained, the details are often missing or incorrect on the digital files for obscure or older songs.

Under the agreement, the Swedish company said it would put forward to publishers a pool of money it has stored for previous unmatched royalties and add to it a “large bonus compensation fund.”

A joint statement did not specify the amount. A person familiar with the deal said on condition of anonymity that Spotify’s existing pool was $16 million and that it was adding another $5 million.

Spotify and the music publishers committed to building a database to match streamed songs to their writers more consistently.

“As we have said many times, we have always been committed to paying songwriters and publishers every penny,” Spotify spokesman Jonathan Prince said in the statement.

David Israelite, the president of the publishers’ association, pledged to keep pushing “digital services to properly pay for the musical works that fuel their businesses.

“After much work together, we have found a way for Spotify to quickly get royalties to the right people,” he said.

Major lawsuits loom

David Lowery, best known for leading the alternative rock bands Cracker and Camper Van Beethoven, filed a $150 million lawsuit in December alleging that Spotify has systematically infringed on copyright in its rush to upload a vast music library.

He wants a US judge to declare a class action lawsuit in which all aggrieved artists could claim royalties from Spotify.

Lowery’s lawyer Mona Hanna criticized Thursday’s agreement as an attempt by Spotify to limit its liability “in secret, without court oversight” and questioned the deal’s enforceability.

“Thousands of songwriters have been harmed by Spotify, and a class action is the best way to protect their songs and their livelihood,” said Hanna, a managing partner at firm Michelman & Robinson.

Songwriter Melissa Ferrick in January also filed a $200 million class action lawsuit against Spotify on slightly different legal grounds.

Individual publishers, which range from major players to small artist-run imprints, will have to choose whether to enter the deal or back one of the lawsuits.

Under the agreement, Spotify will send a royalty check for all songs it cannot match back to the group of publishers — but only those that take part in the deal.

The joint statement did not specify how the money would be divided among the publishers.

Spotify will keep paying normal royalties to publishers regardless of whether they agree to the settlement.

The private company, which is estimated to be worth more than $8 billion, says it has paid back more than $3 billion in royalties since its launch in 2008.

Critics, notably pop superstar Taylor Swift, disapprove of Spotify’s advertising-backed free tier through which three-quarters of its more than 75 million users listen without paying.

Spotify and the publishers’ group voiced confidence that the deal would benefit the entire industry as identification problems are not unique to Spotify.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Beatles end streaming boycott in time for Christmas

The Beatles, the top-selling band in musical history yet a persistent holdout on new technology, announced Wednesday they would end a boycott of streaming in time for Christmas.

The Fab Four's full catalog will be available on all major services including leader Spotify, removing the most glaring musical absence from the booming sector of streaming that allows unlimited on-demand music online.

The website of The Beatles -- who have sold some 600 million albums worldwide -- announced the move in a short video that featured a medley of the band's hits including "Let It Be," "Hey Jude" and "Help!"

"Happy Crimble, with love from us to you," said a statement, employing a slang term for Christmas used by The Beatles.

The Beatles catalog will start streaming at 12:01 am on Christmas Eve local time in each region of the world.

Ringo Starr, one of two surviving Beatles along with Paul McCartney, mentioned the streaming news on Twitter with a slew of  emojis, a means of expression more in line with a younger generation.

"We are coming to you from out of the blue," Starr wrote, adding, "Peace and love peace love."

- Also resisted iTunes -The Beatles were the top-selling and one of the most critically acclaimed groups of all time, releasing 13 studio albums including classics such as "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," "Abbey Road" and "Revolver" before breaking up in 1970.

Despite The Beatles' phenomenal success, the band has repeatedly taken a slow approach to new technology.

The streaming announcement came just five years after the Liverpool-born group's back catalog was first made available for purchase on Apple's iTunes.

The announcement means that fans will be able to listen to the band's songs on nine services -- Spotify, Apple Music, Slacker, Tidal, Groove, Rhapsody, Deezer, Google Play and Amazon Prime.

The Beatles already appear on Internet radio provider Pandora and satellite radio service Sirius XM which have different regulations.

The band's recordings are controlled by its own management company, Apple Corps, and music conglomerate Universal which took over the catalog from defunct label EMI.

- Few other streaming holdouts -The move is a major win for streaming companies, which have faced criticism from a string of artists over the amount of money they make.

Taylor Swift removed her whole back catalog from Spotify last year but agreed to put her blockbuster album "1989" on Apple Music when it launched in June.

Adele, however, is not streaming on any service her new album "25" which nonetheless is the fastest-selling record in the United States and Britain since tracking services started keeping statistics.

The British singer, in a recent interview with Time magazine, said she did not use streaming herself and considered it "a bit disposable."

Several other classic artists who initially resisted streaming have recently relented including Led Zeppelin and AC/DC.

Big names who maintain full or partial boycotts of streaming sites include folk rockers Neil Young and Bob Seger, Radiohead's experimental frontman Thom Yorke and country star Garth Brooks.

Since reports first emerged on The Beatles' streaming decision, the industry has speculated whether the Fab Four would reach a deal with only one service or, as the band ultimately decided, all of them.

Swift has released a film of her latest tour exclusively on Apple Music while Tidal, led by rap mogul Jay Z, has heavily promoted unique content including the full catalogue of Prince.

Tidal and Rhapsody both said that they planned interactive features to go along with The Beatles' music.

Streaming has opened up a new source of revenue to a long-stagnant music industry, but critics say it is not enough to offset declining CD sales.

Revenue from streaming has overtaken that from downloads in 37 countries around the world, according to the IFPI recording industry body, with subscription revenues worth 23 percent of the overall digital market. —Agence France-Presse

source: gmanetwork.com

Google Play Music app coming to iPad

After coming to the iPhone, Google's Play Music app has finally arrived on the slightly bigger iPad tablet.

The app contains a new Material Design interface as well as visual improvements and fixes that allow faster and reliable streaming, The Next Web reported.

However, it said iOS users may not be able to subscribe to the All Access plan through the mobile apps – and will have to use an Android device or a browser.

Still, the Google Play Music for iPad lets users listen to tracks stored on their devices along with up to 20,000 of their songs stored in the cloud and even iTunes.

An unlimited plan allows a user to stream any song from the Play Music library and create custom radio stations. — Joel Locsin/LBG, GMA News

source: gmanetwork.com