March 2019

Spotify - 5 Fast Facts about Spotify and Samsung's Partnership expansion

Spotify expands Samsung partnership

12/03/2019

Spotify expands Samsung partnership providing easy access to Spotify on Samsung mobile devices. Additionally new Spotify consumers in the US with select Samsung Galaxy mobile devices, including the just-launched Galaxy S10, may qualify for six months of free Spotify Premium, redeemable in app. Those devices include the soon-to-be-released Galaxy S10, S10+, S10e, S10 5G, Galaxy Fold and select Galaxy A Series phones. Starting on 8th March 2019 Spotify also will be pre-installed on millions of […]

Qobuz now integrates with SONOS in the US

11/03/2019

Qobuz now integrates with SONOS in the US giving Qobuz HiFi subscribers access to CD Quality (16bit/44.1 kHz) audio. Most SONOS users will be streaming at MP3 quality (320 kbps) but their SONOS devices are capable of full CD quality. US users who subscribe to Qobuz’s HiFi plan for $19.99/month will be able to stream full CD Quality music and push their SONOS gear to its maximum potential. SONOS also provide a number of additional […]

Entertainment subscribers overtake buyers in UK

10/03/2019

Entertainment subscribers overtake buyers in UK as new digital services are turning the UK into a country of subscribers rather than entertainment buyers as music follows video and games to become a majority ‘rental’ market for the first time, according to figures in the latest Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) Yearbook. Revenues for paid-for music subscription services rose 38% in 2018 to £829m and now account for 62% of total recorded music revenues. Ownership formats like […]

Drake named Global Recording Artist of 2018

10/03/2019

Drake named Global Recording Artist of 2018 by IFPI, the organisation that represents the recorded music industry worldwide. Drake has been named the world’s best-selling recording artist of 2018, following the global success of his fifth album Scorpion, including tracks God’s Plan, Nice for What and In My Feelings. Drake is the only artist to ever hold this title multiple times, with his first being in 2016. Released in June 2018, Drake’s 25-track double album […]

US recorded music revenues hit $9.8 Bn in 2018

09/03/2019

US recorded music revenues hit $9.8 Bn in 2018 up 12% on the previous year according to the RIAA, the US recorded music industry association. For the third year in a row growth was driven primarily by increased revenues from paid subscription services from Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon and others, achieving more than 50 million subscriptions in the US. Revenue growth from streaming formats continued to be offset by decreases from both digital downloads […]

Google Play/YouTube Music planning to add news in Australia

09/03/2019

Google Play/YouTube Music planning to add news in Australia which is likely to affect traditional media players according to a report from Roy Morgan, the Australian market research company. The conclusions from the report suggest that introducing news content into Google Play/YouTube Music streaming music services will present a significant challenge for TV, radio and traditional newspapers. Over 5.4 million Australians now use music streaming services with Spotify the clear industry leader used by nearly […]

SoundCloud Go+ for Students introduced

08/03/2019

SoundCloud Go+ for Students introduced giving full-time students all the benefits of SoundCloud’s premium listener subscription for half price. The new offering gives eligible college and university students access to SoundCloud Go+ at the discounted price of $4.99/€4.99 per month. SoundCloud Go+ for Students features SoundCloud’s full catalogue of over 200 million tracks including original tracks, DJ sets, remixes and more, from +20 million emerging and established creators Ad-free listening Track downloads for offline listening […]