“Love Doctor,” a two-minute acid jazz instrumental is used in about 1,500 YouTube videos that do not pay for the rights to do so. The composer, Scott Schreer, has been working with New York startup Audiam in an effort to share in the advertising revenue associated with the videos. While serving as the Audiam test case, “Love Doctor” and Schreer’s library of 1,700 songs are generating about $30,000 per month for their use on the video site. Continue reading Audiam Finds New Ways to Pay Indie Musicians via YouTube

Lesser known musicians and indie bands can find an audience today with the help of online services such as Pandora, Spotify and iTunes, while leveraging the marketing power of social networks including Twitter and Facebook. Yet this disruption to music distribution and promotion does not hold true of live performances. Big name music acts continue to dominate while niche, indie acts receive a very small share of concert revenue. Continue reading Disparity Between Indie Music and Superstar Concert Revenue

The newly revamped social service Myspace continues to attract an audience following its debut — with 31 million visitors and 995,000 app downloads reported in its first 14 days. It has also redesigned its mobile app and is launching a major marketing campaign to target millennials, with their music tastes and interests in mind. However, the service may still need to address issues related to offering unlicensed content from independent labels. Continue reading Redesigned Myspace Continues to Build Millennial Audience

Newly released statistics indicate that Apple’s iTunes and subscription service Netflix continue to lead the Internet video market. Earlier this month, we reported that Netflix held a clear lead in SVOD viewership over Hulu and Amazon for Q1. Yesterday, Apple announced that iTunes viewers are purchasing more than 800,000 TV episodes and 350,000 movies per day. Additionally, Apple announced that HBO GO and WatchESPN are now available directly on Apple TV. Continue reading Apple iTunes and Netflix Dominate the Online Video Market

For those who purchase the newly released “Man Of Steel: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack” limited deluxe edition CD, a unique feature joins Hans Zimmer’s musical score. The deluxe edition includes an access code to download the Z+ Music app for iOS devices that allows users to play the soundtrack in 11.1 channel surround sound using any headphones, including earbuds. The free Z+ app will soon be available to Android users. Continue reading Music App Plays Man of Steel Soundtrack in Surround Sound

Apple opened its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco yesterday with a 2-hour keynote address that re-emphasized the company’s coolness factor, its ability to innovate and a return to a focus on design. Apple introduced its much anticipated iTunes Radio music service, new MacBook Airs with improved battery life, a super-fast cylindrical Mac Pro, the Jony Ive-designed iOS 7 with redesigned icons and distinct functional layers, and a new Mac operating system dubbed “Mavericks.” Continue reading WWDC: Apple Unveils New iOS, Cylindrical Mac Pro and More

During yesterday’s Worldwide Developers Conference keynote, Apple introduced its much anticipated streaming music service. The free, ad-supported iTunes Radio will feature a sizable music catalog, thanks to deals Apple has made with all the major record labels. The service features algorithmically programmed stations, more than 200 genre-based stations and a station that reflects music currently trending on Twitter. Continue reading WWDC: Apple Introduces Ad-Supported iTunes Radio Service

At its annual developers conference in San Francisco today, Apple is expected to unveil its ad-supported streaming music service. The company is also expected to introduce new Mac notebooks and a redesigned iOS featuring a simpler interface. Apple’s new Internet radio service will compete with online music services such as Pandora, Rdio and Spotify. The move into streaming music could also help it compete with rival Google, which has been successful with robust Internet services. Continue reading Apple Expected to Unveil New Streaming Music Service Today

Columbia Pictures’ “After Earth” was screened via a Sony 4K digital cinema projector this weekend during the Cine Gear Expo in Los Angeles. After attendees filled the 500-plus-seat Paramount Theatre on Friday, a second screening was added on Saturday. “After Earth” was among the first feature films produced using Sony’s 4K F65 camera. Sony, Canon and Red are among the major camera makers now able to support 4K. Continue reading Cine Gear Expo: Industry Vets Discuss 4K for Cinema and TV

Walt Disney Studios is planning to launch a new website on June 11 designed to simplify the process of accessing digital versions of movies purchased on Blu-ray Disc or DVD. The Disney Digital Copy Plus website intends to streamline digital delivery for consumers by eliminating the cumbersome “digital copy” process. The site will debut on the same day that the studio’s “Oz the Great and Powerful” is released on disc. Continue reading Disney to Launch New Digital Copy Plus Website Next Week

Insiders suggest Apple is closer to launching its anticipated streaming music service for iTunes. Over the weekend, the company agreed to a licensing deal with Warner Music Group for rights to its recorded music and music publishing. According to people familiar with the matter, Apple is offering Warner’s publishing arm 10 percent of ad revenue, which is more than twice what Pandora currently pays major music publishers. Continue reading Apple Inks Deal with Warner Music: Preps Streaming Service

Video discovery startup Fanhattan unveiled Fan TV yesterday at the D: All Things Digital conference in California. The OTT set-top box will enable access to live TV and VOD, in addition to a cloud-based DVR and streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. Viewers will be able to search and discover TV shows and movies based on genre, actors, social recommendations, etc. Fanhattan plans to partner with pay TV companies to sell the box, which is expected to be available later this year. Continue reading D11 Conference: Fanhattan Unveils All-in-One Set-Top Box

In January, comedy channel Smosh became the top YouTube channel when it surpassed Ray William Johnson. It then became the first channel to hit 8 million subscribers, and then 9 million. Created by Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox under the Alloy Digital umbrella, Smosh became the first to reach eight-digits yesterday with 10 million subscribers. The rapid growth of the channel reflects the recent explosion in popularity of online video. Continue reading Smosh: First YouTube Channel to Hit 10 Million Subscribers

“Downloaded” is a new documentary that examines the rise and fall of music file-sharing service Napster. The film tells the story of Napster co-founders Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker while providing details of the service’s launch in 1998 through its eventual 2011 acquisition by Rhapsody. It examines the downloading generation, resulting changes to the music industry, piracy and legal arguments, and the impact of services such as Spotify and iTunes. Continue reading Napster Documentary: The Music, the Battle, the Revolution

Twitter has rolled out a new component to its #Music service for the Web that offers charts based on genre and artist popularity. The service is powered by the San Fancisco-based company We Are Hunted, which Twitter acquired in 2012. The charts provide compelling data that should be of interest to record labels and could potentially lead to artists engaging more directly with their fans on Twitter. Continue reading Twitter Introduces New Music Charts that Track Popularity