Playlists overtake albums in listenership, says study
Playlists have surpassed albums as a listening format, according to a new study by LOOP (Lots of Online People) and provided to the Music Business Association (Music Biz) for its members. The findings come from a report entitled Music Consumption: The Overall Landscape. Based on a May 2016 survey of 3,014 US respondents, the report shows that playlists accounted for 31% of total listening time across all demographics, while albums accounted for only 22%. Single track listening remained the dominant format with 46% of total listening time, but that number is down 6% from 2015, in which it accounted for 52% overall. Furthermore, YouTube has emerged as the most regularly used source for audio content, with 42% of respondents stating that they used the service to listen to audio for five minutes or more at least once a week. Pandora was next on the list with 31% saying the same, with CDs lagging behind at 22%. The report also explored freemium streaming, showing that 42% of respondents were not paying for music streaming subscriptions because they were happy using ad-supported freemium tiers.
Concord appoints Tom ‘Grover’ Biery head of digital marketing, strategy and D2C
Concord Music Group has appointed Tom "Grover" Biery as senior vice president of digital marketing, strategy and D2C, reporting to Jim Selby, general manager of the Beverly Hills-based independent music company. In his new role, Biery will oversee Concord's global digital strategy and will manage streaming, marketing, social media, and D2C business initiatives for the group's various label imprints. Biery was most recently founder of akaGROVER in 2014, a management, marketing, and consulting company that advised artists, executives, and various music companies. Its clients included hip hop act Kalin and Myles, Artist Partners Group, Loma Vista Recordings, Kobalt Label Services and Republic Records. Prior to that he joined the music management firm The Collective in 2011 and became a founding partner of Collective Sounds, the firm's in-house record label. He worked for Warner Bros. Records from 1990 to 2010, the last five years as General Manager/ EVP.
Fatboy Slim and Mystery Jets to star at Oxjam 10th anniversary bash
Fatboy Slim will kick of this year’s Oxjam 10th anniversary celebrations with an intimate gig in the Dalston Oxfam shop on October 3. The gig will launch Oxjam Music Festival, where hundreds of gigs of every size and genre will take place across the UK throughout October. The events, which are organised by volunteers, will showcase the best local bands and musical talent to raise money for Oxfam. Around 2,500 musicians are expected to play to more than 100,000 people during the course of the festival. Indie rock band Mystery Jets are also supporting Oxjam by playing DJ sets, signing records and meeting fans at Oxfam shops in Leicester, Preston, Newcastle, Edinburgh Cambridge. They will also be performing at the Reading shop and there will be opportunities to win tickets to their gigs throughout the Oxfam shop tour between September 29-October 12.
Facebook ups its music game
Facebook is searching for a director of global music licensing partnerships, a move that industry executives view as a sign that the social network has decided to be more engaged with the music community to develop music-related products and tools. In particular, Facebook’s use of YouTube videos without compensation has been a cause of friction with the industry.“This is the response to Facebook realising it needs to improve its relationship with the industry. They face the eventually of our entire industry realising how much money we are losing from the cannibalisation of Youtube via Facebook Video. If they want to be a real player in video, they need to fairly treat copyright holders,” Joe Conyers III, VP/General Manager of New York-based rights management company Songtrust, told Music Week. (Music Week)
HMV rolls out Home of Vinyl video ad campaign
HMV has unveiled its new ‘home of vinyl since 1921’ promotional video. The ad will appear across 33 independent cinemas across the country located near HMV stores. Filmed at the The Vinyl Factory, the clip is soundtracked by Billy Cobham’s Stratus, the 30-second video includes records by Led Zeppelin, Dr Dre, Amy Winehouse, Guns N Roses, Artic Monkeys, Alt J, The 1975, Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back, Pulp Fiction, The Human League, King Crimson, Madonna and Sonic Youth. Earlier this year HMV announced that 2016 will see the largest sales in vinyl since 1997 with over 1.5 million LPs forecast to be sold across stores as well as online.
