Music+Industry+2

=**[MUSIC INDUSTRY: UPDATE #2 ] ** =



[|AP Article]
 * Facebook and music sharing component **

There will be a new music component to Facebook called the “ticker” that music businesses hope will bring a fresh audience using Facebook updates. As we have all seen, Facebook layout has changed once again, now including a thin stream of updates to the right of profiles. This stream of updates includes interests and entertainment such as news, games, music and movies. To be included in this stream, Facebook users have to agree to participate in continuous sharing. The interesting part of this service is after agreeing to this sharing, interests that are clicked within this stream may lead to automatic sign-up for a free trial. Those companies that have been losing customers to competitors such as Rhapsody, may have an increasing amount of trial users with this, which can ultimately lead to paying subscriptions. All in all, this way of sharing is said to be a huge advantage of businesses and may be a new way of how people discover, listen and subscribe to music. The article below indicates that Spotify has lost several partners in business, but Spotify may very soon be a large addition to the world of Facebook, allowing music to be shared, but also keeping the feeling of profile privacy among users.

// Posted by: Melissa Huapaya //

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Two new logos you'll soon get familiar with. MOG [left] and Rdio [right] = = = = =Music industry banks on free in effort to get paid = Reuter's article

Free. It's a word that every consumer loves and every music industry hates...until recently. In light of decreased record sales, lost jobs in the industry, as well as increased fines for illegal downloading, the industry appears to be giving in as a means of survival. A new trend is the emergence of digital music startups, who offer online streaming access to millions of songs, with the intent that consumers will become monthly paying subscribers. Starting with Spotify in London, U.S. has followed suit with the introduction of MOG and Rdio. But if its free, how are these industries supposed to come up with a profit in their pockets? The conversion rate from free users to subscriber seems to be the make it or break it factor. In order to compete with iTunes, MOG is joining forces with Facebook in order to garner paying subscribers. Although Rdio is not identical in plan, the idea that content access based on user engagement is key in their execution. Risky? Expensive? Yes. However, as we've seen in class, industries must constantly innovate themselves so they don't become irrelevant to their users. Marrying social networking with music subscriptions just might become the norm in the future.

//Posted by: Christal Bundang//

=media type="youtube" key="kmygV3C4tTE" height="282" width="378"= Here is a sample to help get the idea of the project. = = =Battle of the Electronic Bands= Article

For most types of music there are plenty of battle-of-the-bands competitions with the focus mainly on singer-songwriters or traditional band lineups. These contests are ideal for helping new musicians to get their music out to a wider audience. Electronic musicians, on the other hand, have to already have a name for themselves in order to even begin to build a fan base. Now, Bleep.com has teamed up with sister site Warp Records, as well as SoundCloud, the music industry’s leading website, and Transition Mastering Studios, to give independent unreleased electronic musicians the chance to submit two of their tracks for appraisal. The ten to twelve best ranked tracks are sent to Transition for mastering, and will then be released as a collection album. This advancement in music technology has expanded the horizon for future musicians to come and with such a rapid growth in electronic music over the last five years, this new type of music outreach for electronic producers is sure to become a popular competition in music history.

//Posted by: Brianna Dotson//

//[|Live Nation, Universal Music Group Launch Partnership: Management, Ticketing, More]//

Today, Live Nation Entertainment and Universal Music Group have announced they are becoming partners to develop a direct-to-consumer building initiatives. By combining the two companies, they feel it will create a more innovative industry. “Our artists and their music are at the heart of everything that we do, and by leveraging our combined skills, strengths and global reach with that of Live Nation Entertainment, our management companies, artists and their fans will benefit immeasurably." This is the first time that any companies have done anything of the sort. The merging companies are going to bring together live concert ticket sales, along with music products. According to CEO of UMG, Lucian Grainge, this evolving marketplace will bring music fans more flexibility on how they decide to consume music. I can see this partnership going to either be a success and become a trend within the music industry, or not making a difference on a consumer because of how the company will market and price their music products.

//Posted by: Felicia Keay//

=[|Indie labels say there is ‘no upside’ to Spotify]= [|Article]

The music streaming service, Spotify, has recently lost several partnerships from various independent music labels. Century Media and Prosthetic records claim the payouts they receive from Spotify are not enough the cover the loss in profits from physical CD sales. Artists want to get paid every time their song gets played or streamed, but Spotify users pay for the collection of music and not each time they play a song. Independent artists are claiming that the service is going to kill their art because they cannot profit in ways that large record labels can. Spotify responds to these artists and their concerns by showing that in Europe, where it is based out of, over $100 million has been paid to the rights holders in just the 18 months since its launch. It seems the service works well for the big record labels because they have so many artists on the service, but independent groups might need to find a different model to make money.

Poster by: Trevor O'Brien **[MUSIC INDUSTRY HOME]**