Qobuz, an audio platform in operation since 2007 that has been growing in popularity worldwide, recently added the Direct Stream Digital (DSD) and Digital eXtreme Definition (DXD) audio formats as download options in its online store. Described as the ultimate in hi-res digital audio capture and playback, the two are not commonly offered. And while there is not yet a large catalog of songs, audiophiles welcome the news as a harbinger of things to come. Qobuz has already added about 22,500 mainly DSD tracks to its catalog of more than 100 million songs, and says there are more on tap. Continue reading Qobuz Queues Up Hi-Resolution DSD and DXD Music Tracks

U.S. recorded music revenue grew 8 percent in 2023, to an estimated record high of $17.1 billion at retail. It was the eighth consecutive year of growth, according to the RIAA, which says streaming continued to be the biggest driver, notching new heights of paid subscriptions, robust growth in ad-supported listening, and healthy increased contributions from new platforms. Streaming accounted for 84 percent of retail revenue, at $14.4 billion including from 96.8 million paid subscriptions. On the supply-side, wholesale revenue grew 7 percent to $11 billion, also a record. Continue reading Streaming Drives U.S. Recorded Music to Record $17 Billion

Recorded music revenues in the United States reached $8.4 billion for the first half of 2023, an all-time high for the period that translates to a 9.3 percent increase, according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Streaming continued to thrive, accounting for a whopping 84 percent of the six-month revenue total, or $7 billion. Total revenue from paid subscription services grew 11 percent to $5.5 billion, nearly double the growth in the number of individual paid accounts, which rose by just over 6 percent year-over-year, to an average of 95.8 million accounts. Continue reading Streaming Drives Music Revenue in the U.S. to a New Record

Bose, which opened its first retail store in 1993, will close its remaining 119 retail stores in Australia, Europe, Japan and North America. The company didn’t reveal how many jobs will be lost due to the closures, but it is believed to be in the hundreds. Bose stated that the move is due to “the dramatic shift to online shopping in specific markets,” and that “approximately 130 stores located in Greater China and the United Arab Emirates; and additional stores in India, Southeast Asia, and South Korea” will remain open. Continue reading As Sales Shift to E-Commerce, Bose Shutters Retail Stores

Taylor Swift, the last streaming holdout among major musical artists, embraced the technology by releasing her seventh studio album, “Lover,” on Spotify and other streaming services. She had pulled her music from Spotify in 2014, and, in 2017, withheld her sixth album, “Redemption,” from streaming services for three weeks. According to Nielsen, in that year, streaming accounted for about 60 percent of all U.S. music consumption; this year it’s up to 80 percent. Spotify is making the most of Swift’s move with a very visible marketing campaign. Meanwhile, Swift has also helped launch an industry-wide conversation about copyright. Continue reading Taylor Swift Returns to Streaming with Her Seventh Album

The quality of digital audio has waxed and waned since storage migrated from physical media to files stored on devices or in the cloud. Up until now, large technology companies such as Apple have been the ones making audio developments, such as taking MP3 mainstream with the iTunes Music Store in 2003. Increases in bandwidth have helped improve the quality of streaming audio. Consumers have pushed for better audio, and now some music services have adopted FLAC, a Free Lossless Audio Codec that is changing the game. Continue reading Streaming Audio Gets Better with Free Lossless Audio Codec

Media mogul and entertainer Jay-Z is in closing negotiations to acquire Swedish company Aspiro AB, which owns music streaming services WiMP Music and Tidal. The deal, reportedly valued at $56 million, is being handled by Jay-Z’s S. Carter Enterprises. Tidal is the American and U.K. version of WiMP Music, a streaming service that offers CD-quality music files. Once the deal closes, Jay-Z may join the ranks of Dr. Dre who sold his Beats Music streaming service to Apple last year.  Continue reading Jay-Z in Negotiations to Acquire Tidal and WiMP Music Services

Technics announced it plans to launch Technics Tracks, a high-resolution music download service, in the U.K. and Germany starting in January. In addition to tens of thousands of 24-bit FLAC tracks, the service will also carry CD-quality tracks up to 16-bit/44.1kHz. All purchases will be stored in a cloud locker, available for download to multiple devices. The service, custom built by platform operator 7digital, will be accessible from Macs, PCs, and apps for Android and iOS. Continue reading Technics to Launch Hi-Res Music Download Service in Europe

Spotify Chief Executive Daniel Ek defended his streaming service in a statement released Tuesday in response to Taylor Swift’s decision to pull her entire collection of songs from Spotify. Swift, whose latest album “1989” sold almost 1.3 million copies in its first week, pulled her collection from Spotify because she believes the company does not fairly compensate music creators. Ek, however, pointed out that his company has now paid $2 billion in royalties and helps prevent piracy. Continue reading Spotify Chief Exec Responds to Taylor Swift Pulling Her Music

Taylor Swift abruptly pulled her entire collection of music from the world’s most popular music streaming service Spotify earlier this week. The move comes just as her “1989” album went platinum, which has become almost unheard of in the music industry as album and digital download sales plummet. Swift has the money and exposure to sustain her brand without streaming, so like the Beatles, Beyoncé, and Thom Yorke and Nigel Godrich of Radiohead, she has snubbed Spotify. Continue reading Taylor Swift Joins the Ranks of Musical Artists Not on Spotify

Amazon is reportedly in talks with at least three Hollywood studios to join the UltraViolet digital locker consortium. According to people with knowledge of the matter, Amazon has been in talks with Sony Pictures Entertainment, Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. The retail giant is currently ranked No. 2 behind Apple in digital movie sales and rentals. If Amazon were to implement UltraViolet, it could help jumpstart efforts to expand the $2 billion online movie-sales business and make it a greater threat to Apple. Continue reading Amazon in Talks with Hollywood Studios to Join UltraViolet

Tonight’s performance by the Dave Matthews Band in Jacksonville, Florida will mark the first in a partnership between Yahoo and Live Nation to provide free, live streams of a different concert every day for a year. The idea is to draw attention to Yahoo’s video site Screen, which the company sees as an eventual competitor to Google’s YouTube. For Live Nation, and the music industry, the effort could lead to a new franchise for online concerts, which have yet to catch on with consumers. Continue reading Yahoo and Live Nation Partner to Live-Stream Music Concerts

To battle the increasing challenges that music labels have experienced with selling albums, some independent labels and their artists have decided to embrace streaming. Drip.fm, a two-year-old subscription streaming and download service, has partnered with Sub Pop Records to provide subscribers with the label’s albums, singles and special exclusives for $10 per month. The idea is to cultivate and monetize the most loyal fans as streaming continues to popularize. Continue reading Indie Labels Adjust to Growing Popularity of Music Streaming

Auction and shopping site eBay is taking its Sell For Me service mobile with the launch of eBay Valet, an app that lets eBay handle every step of the selling process. The new iPhone app, designed and developed by the Israel Innovation Center, helps to determine an item’s value and list it online, and even handle the shipping once it is sold. Both the Web-based eBay Sell For Me and mobile eBay Valet are designed to make the online selling process more approachable for buyers and sellers. Continue reading Mobile App eBay Valet Handles the Selling Process for You

The Justice Department announced this week that it will review the regulatory agreements created in 1941 that govern ASCAP and BMI. It is likely that, as a result, a lobbying fight will surge between technology giants like Pandora and Google against music companies and songwriter groups. If changes to the regulatory agreements are not made, major music publishers, including Sony/ATV and Universal, may withdraw from ASCAP and BMI.  Continue reading ASCAP and BMI Push For More Flexibility in Music Licensing