Is Windowing on Spotify Worth It for the Labels?; Cardi B Smashes Taylor Swift’s Apple Music Record

Windowing on Spotify is finally happening — but is it worth it for the labels? — www.musicbusinessworldwide.com

It’s been just over a year since Universal Music Group issued an announcement of its new deal with Spotify — revealing that the major had won the concession to ‘window’ major artist releases on the service’s premium tier.

Streaming Era Challenges Creators to Retain Fans & Diversify Income — stem.is 
 A collection of tips, tricks, and insights to help build a diversified business that supplements income derived from Spotify, Apple Music, and other DSPs, highlighting simple steps artists can take in the streaming economy to maximize the value they create for fans and vice versa.

Cardi B Smashes Taylor Swift’s Apple Music Record — variety.com 
 With more than 100 million streams worldwide in just a week, Cardi B’s new album “Invasion of Privacy” has shattered Apple Music’s record for most-streamed album by a female artist in its first week.

Is Spotify the Next Netflix or the Next Pandora? — www.theringer.com 
 The streaming giant’s unusual Wall Street debut was one of the largest tech IPOs of all time. But it’s hard to shake the anxiety around its money-losing business model.

Apple Homepod Sales Reportedly Below Expectations — variety.com 
 Apple stores are said to sit on excess inventory for the company’s Homepod smart speaker.

Spotify’s Auto-Mix Is the Robot That Replaces Party DJs — www.digitalmusicnews.com 
 Spotify might just put an end to the careers of party DJs. A new feature allows for songs on shuffle to be properly mixed together.

Ingrooves’ New ‘Trends Now’ Tool Helps Labels Sort Through Streaming’s Data Dump — www.billboard.com 
 The amount of data coming from streaming services is growing exponentially, but as more information floods in it’s becoming harder for music marketers to see what’s important.

Where do you see Independent Record Labels heading in the future? — medium.com 
 I have no idea where other Independent record labels are headed in future. Perhaps I can give you an idea of where I may take Iron Man Records if anything goes to plan. Which often, it doesn’t. But…

Soundpruf to use cryptocurrency to pay artists/fans for Spotify streams — musically.com 
 We’ve heard about some intriguing music-focused blockchain startups in our time, but Soundpruf is taking a new spin entirely on the intersection between cryptocurrencies and music.

Music Audience Exchange Unveils MAX Artist Matching Engine — platformandstream.wordpress.com

Music Audience Exchange today unveiled its MAX Artist Matching Engine, the result of a three year project from a team of engineers and data scientists.

MoviePass Bundles Subscription With iHeartRadio Streaming Service — www.hollywoodreporter.com 
 The promotion offers access to cinemas and on-demand music for $29.95 over three months.

Australia’s Recorded Music Market Posts Highest Annual Growth Since 1996 — www.billboard.com 
 ARIA announced the market grew by 10.5% in value last year to A$391 million ($303 million), thanks largely to the “continued consumer uptake” of streaming services.

Steve Aoki Loves Streaming Music — m.chron.com

The Grammy-nominated DJ says streaming makes music easily accessible, which is crucial for the industry today.

Pirate Site-Blocking? Music Biz Wants App Blocking Too — torrentfreak.com 
 With thousands of websites blocked all around the world on copyright grounds, pirates are continuing to innovate.