Goodbye iTunes: Apple Adds Music, TV, Podcast Apps For Mac

UPDATE: Apple is phasing out its aging iTunes software and launching standalone versions of its Music, Podcasts and TV apps for Mac users in the next macOS update. The new music app will be built on iTunes, but deliver faster service than the bloated current all-purpose iTunes app. “Customers love…

It’s The 20th Anniversary Of Napster

20 years ago this week, Napster was born in Sean Fanning’s Northeastern University dorm room. Whatever side of the debate you’re on, one can’t deny that Napster changed the music industry forever. Among so many other things, Napster forced record labels to un-bundle the album in iTunes, which fittingly is…

Apple Set To Kill iTunes Today, New iPod Touch Unveiled

Apple is set to announce the end of iTunes today. Ironically, the company unveiled a new iPod Touch last week, the newest iteration of the hardware that made it so easy to put a whopping 1000 iTunes tracks in your pocket. During Tim Cook’s keynote at its annual Worldwide Developers…

Want Streaming Success? Try These Int’l Trigger Cities [Chartmetorics]

As the global music economy continues to transform, it’s important to take a look at the various factors which feed into a song’s success, particularly when it comes to that song’s geographic origin. In this in-depth piece, we explore the concept of ‘trigger cities,’ and how streaming popularity often begins…

2019’s Biggest Streaming Earners (So Far)

While streaming has remade the economic landscape of music and made earning a living harder for many musicians, some of the industry’s biggest stars are still managing to bring in a significant amount of revenue in this new environment. ____________________________ Guest post by James Shotwell of Haulix Streaming has changed…

How To Prepare To Release New Music [Ariel Hyatt]

Many artists spend so much time and energy writing and recording their music, that they almost ignore the essential steps needed to prepare for and launch its release. Veteran music publicist Ariel Hyatt has created a template to help artists avoid this crucial mistake. _______________________________ By Ariel Hyatt of Cyber…

How Spotify Pre-Saves Can Boost An Album Release

With the streaming age in full swing, pre-saves have booted out pre-sales and become a great way to get fans access to your music first, and give you a play count boost when your album finally drops. In this piece Christine Elise Occhino walks us through how to utilize the…

Revelator Launches Artists Wallet To Enable Real-Time Royalty Payments

Multi-territorial music rights administrator Revelator has launched Artist Wallet, a mobile copyright app that uses smart contracts technology to turn future receivables into instant royalty payments. Slow, delayed and inaccurate distribution of royalty payments have long afflicted the entertainment industry. Using Artist Wallet, when a song is streamed online or…

MelodyVR Reports $14.7M Losss

Virtual-reality music startup MelodyVR has reported a loss of $14.7 million on revenues of $1,6 million in 2018. It was the first full year that its signature app was available. The company promised to focus more future efforts on mobile in addition to standalone headsets. “While VR device adoption continues…

Building Your Dream Team: The Music Publisher

In this edition of Building Your Dream Team, AWAL breaks down the who, what, when, where, and why of the music industry’s matchmaking money hunter, the publisher. Here we look at the important role they play in gathering artist revenue, and how why they’ve taken center stage in the legally…