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Xiaomi's answer to Alexa is a $45 smart speaker
Xiaomi's Mi division, which sells some accessories in the US but still no phones, is getting into smart speakers. It just unveiled the Mi AI Speaker, its equivalent to Amazon's Alexa, Google Home and other personal assistant-type models. However, it play music and take voice commands for a lot less, costing just 299 RMB or around $45 when it hits shelves in China starting next month.
Pandora may ditch its ticket business to focus on streaming
Pandora bought Ticketfly in 2015 in a bid to cover more aspects of your music experience, but it's already having second thoughts. Bloomberg sources hear that Pandora is considering selling Ticketfly in case it doesn't find a buyer for the entire company. In other words, it'd return to its focus on streaming music -- important when its on-demand Premium service is still getting off the ground. Pandora has declined to comment, but it's not hard to imagine why the ticketing business might be on the chopping block.
Facebook Live Audio elbows in on radio and podcasting
Facebook spent much of 2016 tricking out its Live video broadcasting feature, most recently opening it up to footage shot with 360-degree cameras. But it seems they've been busy bringing another streaming option to professional organizations and amateur users alike. Today, the social titan is launching Live Audio for a select group of publishers, with plans to open it up to everyone next year.
Kello trains your sleeping habits without using sensors
While there are already a handful of devices that claim to improve our sleep quality, one little startup from Hong Kong's Brinc IoT accelerator thinks that it can do a better job. Kello is a sleep trainer that comes in the form of an internet radio alarm slash Bluetooth speaker slash home automation hub, and unlike some of the competition, it doesn't use any bed sensor, clip-on device nor wearable to track the user's sleep activity. Instead, it's all about leveraging "simple, effective and scientifically proven techniques" from specialists to help us sleep faster, wake up better and ultimately change our lifestyle.
Pandora rebrand hints at its future in on-demand music
Pandora has been promising a big shift to on-demand music ever since it bought Rdio in 2015, and it's hinting at that sea change through a very conspicuous way: its branding. The company has given itself a new look that, as the company puts it, reflects the nature of music as a "personal experience." The days of that staid-looking "P" and matching word logo are over. Instead, you'll see a look more reminiscent of a tech startup, with a "dynamic" brand that mixes up patterns and colors.
Pandora relaunches its mid-level $5 monthly subscription tier [Updated]
After nabbing the remnants of Rdio out of bankruptcy last year, rumors have swirled for months about Pandora Radio's upcoming streaming subscription services. Last month, it seemed that all standing in the way was getting the appropriate licensing — which they got on Tuesday from over 30 major and independent labels . Today, they're relaunching their mid-level $5-per-month subscription radio service as Pandora Plus with a few new features. Unfortunately, this won't be their much-anticipated $10 monthly on-demand music streaming service, which will supposedly come later this year.
Pandora creator takes over as CEO
Pandora isn't just shaking things up with hints of on-demand listening. The internet radio pioneer's board of directors has abruptly appointed founder Tim Westergren as CEO, with outgoing leader Brian McAndrews leaving the company immediately. It's part of a broader management shakeup that also includes new chief financial, operating and product officers. Just what prompted the changes isn't clear from the official statements -- Pandora only says that these moves are meant to "accelerate the company's growth," and notes how Westergren has been deeply involved since the beginning.
Streaming is now the US music industry's biggest money maker
It may have just been a matter of time, but it finally happened: streaming music is now the biggest cash cow for the American music industry. The RIAA's latest year-end sales report reveals that streaming accounted for 34.3 percent of US music revenue in 2015, barely edging past the 34 percent of downloads. Physical sales, meanwhile, were down to 28.8 percent. And despite concerns about free listening hurting the bottom line, paid subscriptions were the star of the show. While ad-based streaming pulled in 30.6 percent more cash versus 2014, paid subscriptions jumped 52.3 percent -- suddenly, forking over $10 a month for unlimited music wasn't such a far-fetched idea.
Pandora has to pay higher royalties starting in 2016
Pandora and similar services like iHeartRadio and SiriusXM will have to give a bigger part of their earnings to music labels starting January 1st next year. The Copyright Royalty Board has ruled that online radio stations have to pay labels 17 cents per 100 song plays by non-subscribers and 22 cents per 100 plays by subscribers. Pandora's rate used to begin at 14 cents per 100 plays, and even then it was never profitable -- in fact, it had to pay over $400 million in royalties in 2014, which was already 44 percent of its revenue.
Deezer expands podcasts and talk radio to bolster its streaming library
After nabbing podcast company Stitcher in late 2014, Deezer added the listening material to its own service earlier this year. Now, the streaming option is filling out its library and adding some to features to make the experience a bit more enjoyable. First, Deezer's lineup of podcasts and talk radio now totals 40,000, doubling the previous tally. The library of shows includes programming from the likes of NPR and CBS News with sports coverage from TalkSport (in the UK and Germany) and more. Next, the company's apps have some new tools for podcast listening. There are playlist and sharing options now, as well as offline listening for Premium Plus subscribers that'll allow access during a flight or other times a connection isn't available.
TuneIn adds NFL broadcasts to its $8 premium radio subscription
Back in August, radio-streaming app TuneIn announced its $8/month premium streaming option that included music, audiobooks and live sports. Today, the company revealed that NFL games are now part of its on-field coverage. Thanks to a multi-year deal with the league, TuneIn will offer live broadcasts for all 32 teams, including both home and away play-by-play feeds. What's more, all national and Spanish radio broadcasts will be included as well. There's an NFL on TuneIn station too, serving up football coverage around the clock with news and commentary from NFL Network shows and podcasts. Starting in November, there will be a live "look-in" show streaming through the app that'll offer news, stats and clips of in-progress games on Sundays from 1 PM to 8 PM ET. If you're willing to follow the action the gridiron without the visuals, TuneIn is certainly a cheaper option that the NFL Game Pass which offers video replays in addition to live gameday audio for $99/year. NFL streams join MLB, Barclays Premier League, Bundesliga and more sports coverage that's already available through the TuneIn subscription service. [Image credit: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images]
Ebro Darden: the DJ who curates the sound of New York on Beats 1
"Beats 1 worldwide. Always on," Ebro Darden's voice booms on the radio. A little over three months ago, Darden became the voice of New York on Apple Music. When the service was announced, Apple was already late to the music-streaming battle. But it hoped to gain some ground, and listeners, with a human edge. In addition to streaming music on demand and personalized playlists, Apple threw Beats 1 into the mix. The radio station would offer "human curation" in the form of three distinctly different DJs in music capitals of the world. But it also promised a star-studded lineup of hosts who would share their own playlists. Ever since, Drake's OVO Sound Radio has dropped exclusives; St. Vincent's quirky mixtapes have struck a note with fans sending in personal snippets; and Elton John's Rocket Hour has often taken listeners back to a pre-streaming era.
Pandora snatches up Ticketfly to become a one-stop shop for music
Pandora has been providing artists with tools to connect with fans and understand their audience for a while now, but the company is getting serious about event promotion, too. The internet radio service announced that it's purchasing Ticketfly, a company that offers ticketing and other marketing tools for live gigs. Ticketfly currently works with 1,200 venues and promoters to help folks like you and I find and purchase tickets to catch a live show. The acquisition means that Pandora will have a way for artists to sell tickets in addition to its AMP (Artist Marketing Platform) feature that provides audience info and Artist Audio Messages that help them directly connect with fans. It also recently purchased Next Big Sound to help with listener insights and trends. This deal for Ticketfly is worth around $450 million and it's said to be "a nearly equal mix" of cash and stock.
Pandora's One Day Pass is 24-hours of ad-free listening for 99 cents
If you find yourself in need of 24-hour access to ad-free music streaming, Pandora now offers an option with its new One Day Pass. For 99 cents, you'll gain access to the Pandora you know and love without all of the distracting advertisements the free tier includes. This means that for under a dollar, you can switch over to the one-day option for times (dinner parties, etc.) when you'd rather not have tunes interrupted by the occasional marketing pitch. Pandora's One Day Pass will be available for listeners in the US Thursday, September 10th through the streaming service's Android and iOS apps.
BBC iPlayer Radio app will soon let you download shows
One of the reasons why podcasts are so popular is because, unlike live radio, you can download episodes and listen to them when you don't have a connection. The BBC has long understood their popularity, offering both dedicated podcasts and shows cut from its daily broadcasts. Now, however, it's going one step further and adding radio show downloads to its iPlayer Radio app. The feature should blur the line between the two mediums, making it easier for listeners to catch up with their favourite shows and DJs.
Sonos adds Spotify Radio support to its Android beta
Sonos owners are able to stream from an impressive collection of services using the company's Controller app. If you've been listening to Spotify on any of Sonos' speakers, you've likely noticed the streaming service's Radio feature isn't available. Well, that's about to change. Starting today, the Sonos Android beta will include Spotify's internet radio stream. Thanks to new tools for streaming services in the pending software update, companies like Spotify are able to add more features to enhance the in-home listening experience. In addition to adding radio, the beta also includes tweaks that make Spotify integration with Sonos more stable, so that when lots of users are streaming songs, quality won't suffer like it did during the holidays. If you're not willing to give the beta version a try, the update is scheduled to arrive for everyone later this summer.
Musicians and Congress join forces in fight for royalty reform
Fair artist compensation from internet radio and streaming services is quite the hot topic of late, and now members of Congress are joining the debate. Congressman Jerrold Nadler, D-NY, and Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn, R-TN, alongside the musicFIRST Coalition, introduced the Fair Play Fair Pay Act today that would end regulations that don't require terrestrial radio stations to pay royalties to artists and labels. As it stands, those AM/FM stations available in your car only pay licensing fees to songwriters and publishers. Organizations like ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) handle those agreements, collecting fees every time a copyrighted song is played on the radio or during a public performance. For its part in managing those agreements, ASCAP brought in over $1 billion last year.
TuneIn brings internet radio to your Android Auto-ready car
If you're part of the fortunate group that can use Android Auto now that it's up and running on Pioneer head units, you may be looking for fresh internet audio sources to keep you entertained during your commute. Well, TuneIn is happy to oblige -- the latest version of its app supports Android Auto from day one, letting you play radio stations and podcasts without taking your eyes off the road for more than a brief moment. It's going to be a long while before you can listen to virtually anything without reaching for your phone, but this should cover the bases for those times when FM radio or your personal music collection just won't cut it.
Rdio's Windows Phone music app gets a much-needed overhaul
Rdio has had a Windows Phone app for some time, but a sophisticated app that keeps up with its Android and iOS counterparts? That's another story. Thankfully, the streaming music service has posted a major update that takes better advantage of both Windows Phone 8.1 and Rdio's own upgrades. You now have access to Cortana's voice commands and proper Live Tile support. You'll also see Rdio's recent emphasis on curation in full effect -- there's a home section full of music "stories," a station browser and a trending section that combines both charts and Heavy Rotation plays. This may not get you to ditch Spotify, but you won't have to sit on the sidelines as your friends get all the latest music-discovery features.
Pandora's revamped radio apps make it easier to personalize your tunes
Take a look at Pandora's current app interface and you'll notice that personalization (outside of the signature thumb buttons) takes a back seat -- it's relatively hard to get just the right mix of artists in your radio stream. That shouldn't be a problem in the near future, as Pandora has just previewed an overhaul of its mobile apps that makes personalization a centerpiece feature. You can now tap a button to view a station's history and add influences, such as artists or songs; the app also lets you revisit your thumb rankings, and you can even "unthumb" tracks that you're tired of hearing.
