Tag: Artists
5 things we greedily still want Spotify to add
Spotify rolled out a pretty extensive update to it's streaming service this morning. Adding robust social networking features, Spotify now links in with your Facebook account for lightning fast music sharing between your friends, as well as syncing up your…
X-OOM MediaGrabber download engine launched
Searching for free downloads from your favourite artists can sometimes be a painstaking task. There are so many bogus sites out there just waiting to install malware onto your computer that it can be as dangerous as it is time…
Last.fm wades into YouTube music video row
In our discussion yesterday about the barney that’s erupted between YouTube and the Performing Rights Society(which collects cash for songwriters), I mentioned Pandora’s exit from the UK market due to hefty PRS fees.
Well, now Last.fm has weighed into the debate with its own take on things. Founder Martin Stiksel says that both sides need to find a resolution – and quick – before less-than-legal alternatives take hold. Stiksel wants cheaper and “less complicated” licenses as a result:
“It is a fundamental problem that we have been facing in that online music licensing is getting more complicated and more expensive. We pay each time one users listens to a song or watches a clip and, while that is more accurate because it makes sure the more popular songs get paid more, it is also very expensive. Terrestial radio pays a fixed minimum and that works out a lot cheaper – we have to find commercially workable rates otherwise illegal services will win and take over.”
Last.fm currently relies heavily on YouTube for its video content, so it has a vested interest in keeping the service going. The service has Last.tv in the works for the future, though, as a way of serving personalized music television to people. That could be interesting when it happens.
PRS and Google are due to meet over the next few days to see if they can find a resolution to the crisis.
Slicethepie.com updates website, still awesome
Quick recap for those of you not familiar with Slicethepie: it’s a site where you can invest in bands. Artists upload tracks, reviewers get paid to review them, and the highest-rated artists go through to a ‘showcase’ where anyone can ‘invest’ in the band.
When the investment reaches a certain level, the band go to a studio and make an album. In return for investing in an artist, you get free tracks, as well as a share of their album’s commercial success. It’s a simple concept, and a great alternative to the traditional ‘try and get signed’ approach for bands.
Facebook application iLike poses threat to MySpace
Someone get Rupert Murdoch on the phone quick-smart! It appears that the Facebook application iLike has surpassed MySpace in regards to the number of fans/friends individual musicians have.
By far the most popular application on the social-networking site, iLike has eight million users on Facebook, with about 10% of that number using the application each day. Artists such as Kayne West and Nickelback reportedly have a vast…
