YouTube Planning Paid Music Service; Apple Said to Be Acquiring Shazam

YouTube to Launch New Music Subscription Service in March — www.bloomberg.com 
 YouTube plans to introduce a paid music service in March, according to people familiar with the matter, a third attempt by parent company Alphabet Inc. to catch up with rivals Spotify and Apple Inc.

Amazon’s Streaming Service Launches in 28 New Countries — variety.com 
 Amazon Music Unlimited, the company’s streaming service, today announced its expansion into 28 additional countries.

Streaming music: why royalties are still only a trickle — www.irishtimes.com 
 A recent Imro report, drawn up by Deloitte, highlights the music industry’s growing contribution to the Irish economy, but how much is actually going into the musicians’ pockets?

Apple Said to Be Acquiring Shazam, the Song Identifying App — www.nytimes.com 
 The app, which can identify a song just by hearing a few seconds of it, has lost some of its shine but is still used by “hundreds of millions of people.”

Pandora Music: Digital Advertising Key to Sales Turnaround — fortune.com 
 Pandora, the largest streaming music provider in the U.S., is still a compelling asset with more than 73 million active monthly users.

‘Call Me by Your Name’ Spurs Biggest Streaming Week Ever for The Psychedelic Furs’ ‘Love My Way’ — www.billboard.com 
 The Psychedelic Furs’ classic 1982 song “Love My Way” claims its biggest streaming week ever, largely thanks to its placement in the new movie “Call Me by Your Name.”

Facebook Adds Collection of 1,000 Free Songs to Use in Videos — www.billboard.com 
 Facebook has added a “sound collection” of 1,000 free, pre-cleared songs by mostly unknown artists for its users to add to their videos.

Artists, blockchain and experimentation: ‘We’re at the very start of what’s possible’ — musically.com 
 Imogen Heap’s Mycelia event in London today wasn’t just about announcing a world tour and Creative Passport initiative for artists. There was also a panel

CES 2018: For Music On The Go, Como Offers Amico — www.twice.com 
 Como Audio will have its Amico portable battery-powered audio solution on display at CES 2018 in January.

Bell Media, Music Canada & Re:Sound Announce New Project to Improve Radio Royalty Collection — www.billboard.com 
 Bell Media has partnered with trade organization Music Canada and music licensing company Re:Sound on a new data project to improve efficiencies in royalty collection for Canadian rights holders.

TV Musicians Slam Networks Over Lack of Payment for Online Sites — variety.com 
 Union musicians on live TV shows have staged demonstrations to persuade networks to pay band members when they appear on network websites.

Spotify and China’s Tencent invest in each other as part of ‘strategic collaboration’ — venturebeat.com 
 Spotify and Chinese tech titan Tencent are investing in each other’s music-streaming services as part of what Tencent president Martin Lau calls a “strategic collaboration.”