Wednesday Bits & Pieces: Playlist.com, Elevation Partners + Pandora & More…
News of Playlist.com’s bankruptcy filing this week did not come as a shock to those following the start-up, who is now headed down a similar path of other online music services in recent times. Following Chapter 11 filing, which was spun by the company as a “breathing spell” – presumably from litigation (3 of the 4 major label groups had filed lawsuits) – further reports revealed just how much Playlist owes in royalty costs to its top creditors, who include Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, Sony Music, EMI Music as well as indie label network Merlin and ASCAP. And that “breathing spell” apparently includes funding a restructuring effort with cash from its biggest, and sole secure creditor, UMG, who is not on the same page… Elsewhere, it appears in talks with television companies, Apple is nearing an agreement with Disney for 99-cent TV show rentals via iTunes… Yesterday it was tipped by TechCrunch that private-equity firm Elevation Partners, who counts Bono among its directors, would be investing in Pandora in the range of $100 million, though both sides are remaining quiet at the moment… And check out a profile of Jason Hirschhorn on Silicon Alley Insider, where he discusses his time at MTV, MySpace and what’s next…
Know Your Rights…
Who's Next?
Over the last year BMG Rights Management, the publishing entity backed by German media giant Bertelsmann (who recently celebrated its 175th anniversary) along with investor KKR, has been busy buying catalogs and publishing companies in Europe and increasingly in the U.S.. So far acquisitions in the U.S. include Crosstown Songs America, Adage IV and Cherry Lane Music Publishing – the latter being their largest acquisition to date. Speculation of the company’s interest in EMI Music Publishing has continued to varying degrees for nearly as long as the new entity has existed, but with Terra Firma’s recent inflow of investor cash, some are questioning whether action will be taken any time soon. Regardless of a move on EMI, insiders share that BMG RM will continue its aggressive acquisitions, with a particular eye on prominent independent publishers… Elsewhere KKR has had its own spotlight recently, with multiple reports of their interest in talent powerhouse CAA and a new listing on the New York Stock Exchange beginning next week, analysts perceive eagerness among U.S. investors for the firm’s arrival. Stay Tuned…
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Wednesday Bits & Pieces: Sony Music, Apple + EMI, A MySpace without Google & More…
“We had to change the stretch limo culture that prevailed in many areas of the music industry,” says Schmidt-Holtz
A Sunday piece in the New York Times takes a look at Sony Music and its head Rolf Schmidt-Holt. Much of the article examines Sony Music’s moves into territory outside of the traditional music industry, including its partnership with Simon Cowell and a consulting relationship with the government of Argentina… The other apple, Apple Records, announced a new partnership with EMI for the digital release of fifteen remastered albums from artists including Badfinger and James Taylor, though it doesn’t appear that any Beatles releases will be included… MySpace’s lucrative ad-deal with Google is just about up, and while the Wall Street Journal recently reported on News Corp.’s shopping of a new partnership, TechCrunch asks some crucial unaddressed questions… And if you thought those Jonas Bros. albums you bought in the privacy of your home would go unnoticed, think again. In a move to further propel its new iAd platform and compete with Google, Apple is mining data from billions of iTunes downloads to study user’s buying habits…
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In Case You Missed It: Who’s In & Who’s Out Edition
MySpace Co-Prez Jason Hirschhorn (L) leaves; Mike Jones (R) Remains
With an announcement out of London this morning, Roger Faxon is in as the new group chief executive for EMI, moving from his previous position as chairman and chief executive of EMI Music Publishing. Recently appointed non-executive chairman of the group’s recorded music division, Charles Allen, will now become an advisor to EMI and Terra Firma… MySpace co-president Jason Hirschhorn is out as shared head of the troubled social network, leaving Mike Jones to remove the “co” from his title… News yesterday revealed that veteran A&R executive Mark Williams is in as the new Sr. VP of A&R at Columbia Records. William’s most recently worked on M.I.A.’s new album for Interscope Records… Limewire is in for more trouble as members of the National Music Publisher’s Association including EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Publishing, Universal Music Publishing Group and Warner/Chappell filed a copyright complaint in federal court against the file-sharing service this week… And free concerts are out in NYC, as the city cracks down after the recent Drake concert fiasco…
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In Case You Missed It: Reading Recap
Thom Yorke Shares his Cheery Outlook on the Biz
Apple’s WWDC announcements on Monday did not include a new cloud-based version of iTunes, as many had expected (or hoped for), but Jobs did reveal the company already has a boatload of iAd commitments… Buzzmedia is not the only one bolstering its ad network, as startup MOG announces a new deal that will add Sony Music Entertainment online properties into their network, including 117 major artist websites… In a recent BBC Radio 4 documentary, new EMI Music chief Charles Allen discusses the state of his company and the difficulty of spreading the message that they are in “really good shape”… Following Allen’s positive outlook came comments from Radiohead frontman and former EMI artist, Thom Yorke, predicting the collapse of the music industry within “only a matter of months” and going on to advise aspirant musicians to avoid the “sinking ship”… And a report in Reuters today examines Terra Firma boss Guy Hands‘ gift-giving techniques and the “high concentration, high risk strategy” in his current efforts to save EMI… Elsewhere, a look at the business of selling online fans, followers and viewers to artists… New England area coffee shops and other small venues are facing increased pressure from PRO’s… And Complex Magazine discusses free music, almost signing Drake and f*ckin kids in a brief Q&A with Warner Music boss Lyor Cohen…
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In The Bin: What’s New This Week
AWOLNATION Comes Back From Earth
Here’s a quick look at some of the new releases hitting the physical and digital shelves this week… Audra Mae’s debut full-length The Happiest Lamb is out on SideOneDummy Records. The singer-songwriter just returned from a UK tour and is getting ready to start a North American run with Philadelphia’s Good Ole War… Infinite Arms, the highly anticipated third LP from Band of Horses drops today via the interesting label combo of the band’s imprint Brown Records along with the newly paired Fat Possum and Columbia Records… New EMI act Chiddy Bang releases their Opposite of Adults EP exclusively on iTunes this week, with a full-length expected next month. The EP features a sample-laden title track that recently caught fire in the UK – and you were worried there wasn’t going to be a MGMT summer jam this year… Brooklyn son Gordon Voidwell unleashes his Ivy League Circus single on 12″ vinyl, checkout a video promo on Ralph Lauren’s Rugby site, and AWOLNATION is Back From Earth…
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In Case You Missed It: Reading Recap
Court Rules Against Limewire in Copyright Infringement Case
A big week for Terra Firma boss Guy Hands, as numerous reports revealed that the firm was able to raise the needed 105 million pounds to keep control of EMI. The new injection of funds will keep the music company under the control of the investment firm for another year… A federal court ruled against file-sharing service Limewire in a copyright infringement case; its founder Mark Gorton may be held personally liable as well… Elsewhere, the latest Pirate Bay bidder has tapped TAG Strategic’s Ted Cohen to help facilitate the deal… Universal Music Group dropped it’s lawsuit against Project Playlist (now Playlist.com)… American Idol creator Simon Fuller announced he has been responsible for 160 million downloads via iTunes… And the Apple rumor mill is churning with speculation that a streaming music service will be announced at the Worldwide Developers conference on June 7th…
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In Case You Missed It: Reading Recap
One Million + Sold
The clock is ticking for Terra Firma to come up with enough funds to keep control of EMI – recent reports indicate Guy Hands has rallied some of the investment firms’ largest backers in an effort to raise the minimum needed by the fast approaching deadline… Apple announced at the start of the week that they have already sold one-million iPads, that’s less than half the time it took to sell the same amount of iPhones… Elsewhere, Warner Music Group reported a 15% rise in digital revenue in its most recent quarter… Tunecore delivered stats from 2009 that included a total of $35-million in download and streaming income for artists… And The Register takes an interesting look at Beggars Group in an interview with indie label-group head Martin Mills…
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In Case You Missed It: Reading Recap
Always Front & Center... This Week: Adobe, iAds & Lala
Last weekend saw the news that EMI Music chairman Charles Allen is reportedly pulling back from his strategy to sell-off parts of the music group in an effort to righten the company’s state of financial disorder… The New York Times published a lengthy piece focusing on the new Live Nation Entertainment and its leading duo Irving Azoff and Michael Rapino… Rhapsody beat out other mobile music services this week by being getting its new iPhone app approved by Apple, making it the first service in the U.S. market to allow users to store subscription music in the phone’s memory… A lot more Apple in the headlines this week as Steve Jobs publicly sounded-off on his company’s continued stance against supporting Adobe Flash on its mobile devices. Billboard takes a look at what that means for music, while questions remain on how it all could relate to Apple’s imminent iAds platform that will likely cost advertisers at least $1 million dollars to buy into the new ad network… UK-based streaming service We7 announced that during the month of March, and for the first time ever, it had covered all operating and royalty costs with advertising revenue, making it the first company in the the ad-funded space to do so… Elsewhere, David Letterman’s Worldwide Pants Inc. has started a record label, and its first release will be Orange County’s Runner Runner… And many are wondering if the freshly posted notice from Lala that it will be shutting down on May 31st and is no longer accepting new users means an iTunes in the cloud is finally on the way…
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In Case You Missed It: Reading Recap
Buh Bye bebo; AOL Plans to Sell or Shutter the Social Network
The week began with a report that EMI was apparently still in talks with Sony Music about a possible catalog licensing deal, though some have pointed out that contracts with key EMI artists might prevent such a deal from going through. No further updates followed, other than a cheery financial outlook from Terra Firma boss Guy Hands… AOL revealed that it was planning to sell or shutter the social networking site bebo that it paid $850 million for in 2008, while Rhapsody spun off into an independent company shedding former partners RealNetworks and Viacom/MTV; the subscription music service now also counts Universal Music Group as a new minority investor… Digital royalty collection organization SoundExchange announced that its 2010 Q1 payouts to artists and copyright holders topped all previous quarters… Details about the Solid Sound Festival were released this week, the Wilco-currated three-day event will take place in June at MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA… And Sonicbids owner Panos Panay talks about the artist-as-entrepeneur…
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