Tag Archives: Music Business

Spotify

Posted on by 
by ERIN SINGLETON

HEADQUARTERS

Spotify AB
Birger Jarlsgatan 61, 10tr
113 56 Stockholm
Sweden
556786-5729
(Research & Development)

Spotify Ltd.
4th Floor
25 Argyll Street
London W1F 7TU
United Kingdom
(Main headquarters)

http://www.spotify.com/

KEY EXECUTIVES [1]

ABOUT 

 Spotify is a digital music streaming service that allows users to create personal playlists and radio stations, browse Spotify-curated playlists, and share music with friends. Users can do this through their mobile devices, tablets, or desktop computers. The service currently has more than 30 million songs registered within its system through licenses with major labels and recording artists [2]. Developed in 2006 by entrepreneurs Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon in Stockholm, Sweden, Spotify was created as a response to the illegal downloading of music going on by consumers through piracy sites like Napster [3]. In 2008 the service was launched in Scandinavia, France, the U.K. and Spain; in 2011, it made its way to the U.S [3]. There are currently over 60 million users (15 million of which are paying users,) 1.5 billion playlists, and 20,000 songs added per day [2].

MARKET EXPANSION

Spotify is currently available in 58 markets worldwide, including Brazil, Germany, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Taiwan, Italy, and more [2]. In 2013, Spotify expanded to 8 new locations in its steps towards penetrating Latin America and Asia markets, launching in Mexico, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore [4]. Spotify introduced Canada’s launch in 2014 [5]. Plans to enter Japan are still in the works, and previous plans to enter Russia have been halted due to its unstable economic conditions [6]. As Spotify has continued to expand its availability across the globe, its number of users has greatly increased every year.

 FINANCIALS

Despite industry rumors, Spotify still remains a privately funded company and is not going public anytime soon[7][8]. Spotify is currently close to completing a new round of funding from Goldman Sachs and an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth funds, raising $400 million and putting its value at $8.4 billion [9]. After the deal, Spotify will be worth double the value of its closest competitor, Pandora Music ($3.85 billion), despite having higher net losses than Pandora and less market share (6% versus 31%, respectively) [10]. The deal will also put Spotify at the top ranks of the highest valued privately funded technology companies, along with Square, Dropbox, and Airbnb [11].

BUSINESS MODEL

There are two tiers for Spotify users: ‘freemium,’ a free, ad-supported streaming format, and ‘premium,’ an ad-free streaming subscription for $9.99/month. The premium subscription comes with other perks, including unlimited song skips, offline mode ability, and on-demand mobile access [12]. Additionally, there is a student tier for $4.99/month and a family plan for $5.99/month. Spotify philosophizes that the freemium option will drive users to eventually pay for the better experience [2]. Through these payment options, Spotify has paid $2 billion USD to the music industry, $1 billion of which coming from 2014 alone [2]. 70% of revenues earned are paid out to rights holders in the industry, while Spotify holds onto the remaining 30% [2]. Spotify does not pay ‘per stream,’ but rather through royalty statements that are dependent on the country the artist is being streamed, the number of paid users, the country’s currency value, and the artist’s royalty rate. As a result, ‘per stream’ payouts are typically between $0.006 and $0.0084 [2].

ARTIST BACKLASH

do-no-reuse-taylor-swift-the-beat-bb36-sarah-barlow-billboard-650

Taylor Swift pulled her catalogue off Spotify this fall 2014. Image courtesy of Billboard

With the trending drop of physical sales and digital downloads, there has been heavy debate circulating the music industry involving streaming companies’ payouts. More specifically, there has been criticism from recording artists and songwriters who feel that their ‘art’ is being undervalued and deserves fairer compensation from streaming services. Just this past fall, Taylor Swift pulled her entire catalog off of Spotify in defense of songwriters, saying that she is “not willing to contribute [her] life’s work to an experiment that [she doesn’t] feel fairly compensates the writers, producers, artists, and creators of this music” [13]. Other artists who have called out against the streaming service include Jason Aldean, Radiohead’s Thom Yorke, Talking Heads’ David Byrne, and others [14]. In response, Ek argues that record labels are to blame since they are the owners of the music and thus the ones distributing it to their artists under their own respective terms [14].

The biggest artist-led backlash against Spotify is the creation of competitive streaming service Tidal, an artist-owned global music and entertainment platform ran by Jay Z, Beyoncé, Deadmau5, Madonna, and other music superstars [15]. To counter artist tensions, Spotify recently rolled out a new feature called Tweet the Beat, which allows users to express their gratitude towards their favorite artists through an interface pop-up asking them to thank the artist via a pre-written tweet [16]. Rihanna is the only artist users have been asked to thank. This experimental feature has been negatively received by Spotify users, who view it as a spam [15]. A Spotify spokesperson says that, “[They’re] always testing new things on our different platforms and to various user groups,” most likely to stick out amongst the competition [15]. However, Tweet the Beat has been rolled back as a result of such critical opinions.

RECENT NEWS

These past few years have been busy ones for Spotify as the company proactively works towards staying ahead of the concentrated streaming market. In January of 2015, Spotify introduced Touch Preview, a “better way to preview any song, album, artist, or playlist” [17]. This feature allows users to gain a “sneak peak” to a song or playlist by holding down a finger to the screen to preview the song instantaneously. If the user likes what they hear, they can save the song with one simple swipe.

In February of 2015, Spotify introduced an update for desktop users, presenting fully integrated lyrics, powered by Musixmatch, as well as an explore option to search popular lyrics from Spotify’s top songs [18]. The desktop update also included easier access to Friend Feed, which allows users to discover what their friends are currently listening to, as well as a revamping of daily viral charts.

 

In March of 2015, Spotify’s PlayStation Music was launched in partnership with Sony Network Entertainment International LLC, making it “easier than ever for gamers to enjoy their favorite tracks whilst playing their favorite games” [19]. Users are able to create their own on-demand soundtracks to their games without interruption to the gaming experience. Just this April 2015, Spotify launched Spotify for Brands, a platform that reveals audience statistics and insights to benefit brands in their endeavor to connect with the younger generations [20].

OVERVIEW

Since its 2006 development and 2008 initial launch, Spotify has demonstrated significant exponential growth over the past 7 years with no sign of slowing down anytime soon. Leading the pack in the digital streaming market, the service is tirelessly working towards providing unique innovations and opportunities for its consumers that one can only expect to continue in the many years to come.

SOURCES

[1] Spotify Biographies, Spotify Press.

[2] Spotify Artists, Spotify Explained.

[3] Forbes, Spotify’s Daniel Ek: The Most Important Man In Music

[4] Chicago Tribune, Spotify Expanding into Asia, Latin America

[5] Spotify Press, Spotify is Live in Canada!

[6] Business Insider, Spotify has cancelled its launch in Russia

[7] Yahoo! Finance, Spotify seeks to hire U.S. filings expert as bankers eye IPO

[8] Yahoo! Finance, Spotify isn’t going public anytime soon

[9] Yahoo! Finance, Spotify Nears New Funding at Valuation of $8.4 Billion

[10] Market Realist, Why Is Spotify’s Valuation More than Double Pandora’s?

[11] Wall Street Journal, The Billion Dollar Startup Club

[12] Pocket-Lint, Spotify free vs Spotify premium: What’s the difference?

[13] Rolling Stone, Taylor Swift’s Label Head Explains Spotify Removal

[14] Rolling Stone, Spotify Founder Fires Back at Taylor Swift

[15] The Telegraph, Stars lead backlist against Spotify with their own music streaming site Tidal

[16] Digital Trends, Spotify Rolls Back ‘Tweet the Beat’ for Rihanna After Back Lash

[17] Spotify Press, Introducing Touch Preview: a better way to preview any song, album, artist, or playlist

[18] Spotify Press, Introducing our latest update for Spotify on desktop

[19] Spotify Press, Soundtrack your game with Spotify on PlayStation Music

[20] Spotify Press, Spotify launches playlist targeting for brands

Pandora

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 by: Andrea Lopez

 

Pandora Image –   [1]

Screen Shot 2014-11-26 at 5.57.34 PM

Pandora App Icon [2]

ADDRESS/CONTACT

2101 Webster Street, 16th Floor                                                                               Oakland, CA 94612

Tel: (510) 451-4100                                                                        http://www.pandora.com/

COMPANY PROFILE
Pandora is a free progressive music service provider that strives to provide a top of the line variety of music experience to its listeners. Through Pandora, people can experience a personalized interactive experience with the music of their choice on their devices at anytime and any place. [3] 

Screen Shot 2014-11-26 at 6.17.56 PM

courtesy of : Human Genome Project – [4]

                                  •

By way of a devised system, better known as “The Human Genome Project,” Pandora has enabled listeners to plant a seed -selecting an artist, song, or genre of their choice that will then generate music of the same genre for the listener. [3] This is all composed through a music taxonomy system created through Pandora, ultimately creating a positive listener experience. [5]

    OPERATING PANDORA

Free to sign up for users, Pandora enables listeners to create up to 100 stations depending on their musical preference. By searching an artist, genre, or song, users can create station that will play only music similar to the item searched. The image below exhibits a user’s profile with their selected stations on the left hand side.

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 2.58.03 PM

Image of Users Profile [6]

BRIEF HISTORY

Founded in 2000 by Tim Westergren, Pandora is rooted in Oakland, CA where the company opened their first offices [7]. In less than a decade, Pandora had impressively raked up approximately 30 million registered users and earned $40 million in revenues [8].

•

Back in 2009, Pandora opened a new world for their users when they introduced the ad-free radio service for 36 dollars/year, Pandora One. However, between 2009 -2013, Pandora experienced an increase in rising licensing costs to SoundExchange, currently still growing. With these new setbacks, Pandora has now increased their monthly subscription from $3.99 to $4.99. Current subscribers are safe for now with their $3.99 monthly payment, but by 2015, the going rate with be the same across the boards with subscribers [8].    

Since the beginning, Pandora has strived to allow an easy streamline service to its users through its free subscription, and now ad-free subscription, which in 2013 was reported to have reached 72 million monthly listeners. [9]

KEY EXECUTIVES

BrianMcAndrews – Pandora CEO          Courtesy of www.rightstartups.com [10]

Mike Herring – Pandora CFO       Courtesy of www.cnet2.com [11]

Tim Westergren - Pandora Founder Courtesy of: www.kinja-img.com

Tim Westergren-  Pandora Founder Courtesy of: www.kinja-img.com [12] 

 

FINANCIALS

As reported in the SQ Press Release of Financial Results, Pandora reached 218.9 Million dollars in total revenue and is projected to reach 895 Million – 915 Million for the 2014 total yearly revenue [13]. The SQ revenue increased by 38% since the prior year’s SQ revenue results. The suggested increase in revenue is said to have resulted from investments in mobile and local advertising, demonstrated in the 39% advertising revenue increase and the 35% yearly revenue increase in subscriptions [14].

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 5.30.10 PM
Pandora Financial Revenue Growth from ’12-Q1’14                                                                          Courtesy of www.tctechcrunch2011.com [15]

Pandora’s yearly revenue over a two year span between 2012 and 2014 indicates approximately a 50 million dollar increase. Initially, when Pandora was first launched, they experienced far less competition. As more and more music streaming companies are introduced into the market, Pandora, although still providing service to a plethora of  devoted users, has experienced somewhat of a sluggish increase of revenue despite what was predicted for the company.

COMPETITORS

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 3.06.14 PM

Graph of Edison Survey Results                      Courtesy of www.marketrealist.com [17]

Over the years, Pandora has grown exponentially as a company and dominated in its listener audience numbers compared to its competitors. Among Pandora’s competitors, including iHeart Radio, Spotify,Google Play All Access, Rhapsody,and Slacker, Pandora still exhibited exceeding results in the Edison Research study taken in March 2014 [16]. iHeart Radio, Pandora’s most prominent competitor reported to have 9% of the listener population, while Pandora ranked in                           at 31% of the listener population. Over 2,000 people were interviewed for the Edison Study with a demographic of individuals raging in ages from 12 +. [18]

Click here to read about Forbes content contributor Amadou Diallo‘s personal opinions when comparing three different music streaming services: iTunes Radio, Pandora And Spotify.

PANDORA PLATFORMS

Pandora is now available in car radio systems, cellular devices, iPads, laptops to even Blu-ray players. This multi faceted, multi-platform side of Pandora allows for so many options for users to stream their music. [19] It was reported in 2009 that Pandora’s 43 million users accessed their accounts on 100 different consumer devices other than a computer [20]. This is simply a number that demonstrates just how widely attainable streaming music is across  different platforms.

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 6.02.41 PM

Pandora’s Many Platforms             Photo courtesy of www.gigaom.com     [21]

PANDORA’S POPULARITY

For such a wide scope of listeners in terms of age, Pandora has provided a great service, largely due to the interactive qualities of the site. Not only does Pandora possess the users  profile information about them, the company also takes note of the user’s music preference and times they are actively listening. Through the “thumbs up, thumbs down” buttons on the users profile, further explained at 13:50 of this video, Pandora receives information on media you both like and disliked. [22]

NOW, & WHAT’S AHEAD

Pandora’s great success has not only sustained  its current prosperity, but promises for it’s bright future as well. In the interview conducted at Hivios first ever Radio Ideas Festival in 2013 between Mark Ramsey and Pandora CTO Tom Conrad, the future plans of the company are somewhat touched upon. Not only is Pandora certainly withstanding any threats from competitors today,but the executive board is constantly looking for new ways of improvement. Conrad alludes to Pandora’s hopes and explorations into livening up the interactive aspects of the site. He goes on to explain the possibility of venturing outside the lines of music and comedy and delving into sports entertainment and possibly weather.

Further explained is Pandora’s intentions of understanding their audiences to a higher level. Already Pandora has taken exceptional steps towards fully emerging their users into an interactive world where their music preferences are key, but Tom Conrad foreshadows taking the leaps as Facebook has when it comes to audience fragmentation. This meaning that listeners are divided based on interest. From this, Pandora understands their audience better catering to their needs and wants.

What's Ahead for Pandora? CTO Tom Conrad talks to Mark Ramsey [23] 

 Look Below for question conducted in the interview:

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 5.43.52 PM

A recent article titled “Will Pandora Survive 2015,”  explains the possible decline of streaming music sites due to the increase in royalty rates. [24] With this possibility, it could be possible for Pandora to steer clear merging with big names in the industry like Apple, and instead conducting business with a small scale radio broadcaster, ultimately conserving revenue. [24]. Although, it is safe to say that with constant new artists, no matter big or small, someone, somewhere desires to be noticed. Music is constantly created, therefore driving the industry.

Sources:

[1] Pandora Company Image, Loadthegame.com, RT: 11/15/2014

[2] Pandora App Icon, Pandoraradioformac.com, RT: 11/15/2014

[3] Pandora Company Profile, Press.Pandora.com, RT: 11/16/2014

[4] Pandora Music Genome Project Photo, Indirest.com, RT: 11/15/2014

[5] About Pandora, Pandora.com, RT: 11/20/2014

[6] Pandora Image Profile, Dailytech.com, RT: 11/15/2014

[7] Pandora Biography, Investor.Pandora.com, RT: 11/17/2014\

[8] The Verge:Pandora Raises Fees, Theverge.com, RT: 11/17/2014

[9] Pandora Radio Dominence, Theverge.com, RT 11/17/2014

[10] Brian McAndrews, Rightstartups.com, RT: 11/15/2014

[11] Mike Herring, Cnet2.com. RT:  11/25/2014

[12] Tim Westegren, Kinja.com, RT: 11/15/2014

[13] Pandora Investing, Investor.Pandora.com, RT: 11/27/2014

[14] Pandora Investing PDF, Investor.pandora.com, RT:11/27/2014

[15] PandoraRevenueImage, tctechcrunch.com, RT: 11/25/2014

[16] Pandora ups subscription price as competition build, washingtonpost.com, RT: 11/30/2104

[17] Graph of Edison Survey Results, marketrealist.com, RT: 11/30/2014

[18] Online Radio Habits, Edisonresearch.com, RT: 11/25/2014

[19] Pandora Radio’s Dominance Built On Big Data Edge, forbes.com, RT: 11/26/2014

[20] Pandora: Now Playing Everywhere, gigaom.com, RT: 11/27/2014

[21] Pandora’s Many Platforms Image, gigaom.com, RT: 11/27/2014

22] Pandora’s Guide to Mobile App Platforms, gigaom.com, RT: 11/27/2014

[23] Interview Video, vimeo.com. RT: 11/30/2014

[24] Will Pandora survive 2015?, qz.com, RT: 11/30/2014

 

http://advertising.pandora.com

Sirius XM Radio

Posted on by 
by Andrew Spalter
sirius-xm_logo_224

Courtesy of Consumer Affairs [1]

Seriously, what is Sirius XM [2]?  

Sirius XM is a commercial-free listening service that is always in your grasp.  Whether it be by smartphone, tablet, computer, home, or even car, you can always listen to Sirius XM radio within Wifi or Cellular range.  The channels consist of every genre, play-by-play sports, news and talk, and the biggest/hottest entertainment, 24/7.

Sirius XM has over 175+ channels that range from every genre of music to some of the most listened to entertainment channels in the world, including the wildcard, Howard Stern [3].  With over 26 million subscribers [4] Sirius is one of the largest most subscribed to Music Streaming/Radio service.

sirius_xm_channel_lineup_starting_may_4_2011

Courtesy of Maple Crest for Lincoln Union [5]

Who is in Charge [6] Here?

trustee-james-meyer

James E. Meyer (CEO) -Courtesy of SBU.edu [7]

MV5BODkyOTYxMjA1N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMTI0OTIz._V1_SY317_CR9,0,214,317_AL_

Scott Greenstein (President & Chief Content Officer) -Courtesy of IMBD.com [8]

photo3

Dara Altman (Left) (Executive VP & Chief Administrative Officer) -Courtesy of New York Social Diary [9]

Resources-16149-DonnellyP_2011_20141011115535

Patrick L. Donnelly (Executive VP & General Counsel) -Courtesy of Pli.edu [10]

Sirius XM’s Financials [11]

Closing the previous weekend, Sirius XM (SIRI) [12] is trading at $3.63.  Since Sirius XM is a publicly traded company, their total company revenue has sky rocketed the past few years.  Going from a $3 Billion revenue to closing at a $3.8 Billion revenue last year. Sirius XM is the largest radio broadcaster [4] and their revenue stream comes from their 26.7 million subscribers.  A large amount of their 26.7 million subscribers comes from their vast array of listening devices that their service can be installed on.  Everything from a smartphone to a car has the ability to obtain Sirius XM.  Along with their multiple ways to be listened to, they have a huge range of genres and entertainment stations including, Howard Stern, Oprah, Pink Floyd, Frank Sinatra, and Tiesto.

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 3.03.05 AM

-Courtesy of Google Search [13]

Competitors?  Who? [14]

Who can compete with a company this large and with fans this loyal and committed into yearly contracts?  Not many in fact.  Companies such as Pandora [15], or Apple/iTunes [16] (radio), Spotify (Radio) [17], etc., are the closest competitors to Sirius XM.  The reason that these particular apps/companies are competitors is due to the fact that you can pay for their radio service.  These companies that are competitors to that of Sirius XM are extremely different due to the fact that you cannot instal those streaming services in your car [18] or home.  Although, now with new technology you are able to store the application version of these companies into your car, home, phone, and tablet.  They are slowly approaching that of the power of Sirius XM, but slowly.

History of Sirius XM

 Before Sirius XM was Sirius XM there was a Sirius Radio and a XM Radio, separately.  In July of 2008 Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio announced that they had completed their merger [19].

sirius xm

Courtesy of Toplessactions.com [20]

Since then the companies have been called Sirius XM radio and instead of mainly cars only offering Sirius, or XM radio, they offer Sirius XM radio.  Before the huge merge, in 2000 the FCC allowed satellite radio to be deployed, thus the launch of three satellites [21] into orbit from Kazakhstan in July.  Soon after that Sirius secured partnerships with Chrysler, Ford, and BMW and in 2002 they launched the initial phase of its service in the cities of Denver, Houston, Phoenix, and Jackson, MS [22] in February of 2002, then in July Sirius spread nationwide.

Where can YOU find Sirius XM?

With Sirius covering of 3,717,792 [23] square miles of coast to coast coverage, and with a reach of 200 miles off shore, Sirius XM goes where you go.  The satellite radio service can be found in vehicles built by GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Hyundai, Honda, Nissan, Audi, and Volkswagen [24].

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 4.23.45 PM

Courtesy of Siriusxm.com [25]

Not only can you find the satellite radio in 11 car companies but you can listen to the service in your car, home, boat, plane, business, or even on the go from your Smartphone, Tablet, and Computer.  Other places that are capable of playing from Sirius XM are Android devices, the Kindle Fire, Blu-ray & Media Players, Home Audio, Custom Audio, and Smart TV’s. [26]

What’s Happening at Sirius XM, What Can You Expect?

Recently you may have heard that Sirius XM and their competitor Pandora have been slammed with a series of lawsuits over older recordings.  The reason beyond these lawsuits is due to the fact that neither company pays record labels or artists for songs that were recorded before the year 1972.  This was due to the copyright protection that was first applied to recordings via Federal copyright protection [27].

11504080_s

Courtesy of Bloggless.com [28]

Overall both companies lost their lawsuits but this is a big awakening and a step forward for music subscription via satellite.  When one door closes another one opens and due to these lawsuits Sirius XM will be paying artists and labels appropriately, creating lasting business relationships.

Upcoming News/Numbers

Contrary to popular belief, Sirius XM was not always so profitable.  Only a few months after their merger in 2008, Sirius was on the cusp of declaring bankruptcy but with the help of a $530 million loan from Liberty Media in 2009, Mel Karmazin was able to negotiate a deal for 40% equity stake in Sirius XM. Then in their fourth quarter of 2009, Sirius XM reported a profit of income of a little over $14 million [29], since then it has all been up hill.  They even released a statement via their companies investor site stating, “We expect to double factory installed vehicles to over 100 million by 2018 and plan to offer our unique content and valuable entertainment to even more customers in the future.” (Jim Meyer, President, Sirius XM) [30]  In 2012 this statement was released and during that time, Sirius XM was in over 50 million cars.  Their goal is coming into fruition with adding nearly half a million subscribers per quarter.  Maybe it won’t hit 100-million vehicles, but they are constantly raising the bar higher and higher.  The company Sirius XM has made a complete turned a complete 180 from being nearly bankrupt to a company that substantially increases profit each quarter.

Sources:

1.  Sirius XM Logo, Consumeraffairs.com, RT: 11/20/2014

2.  What is Sirius XM?, Siriusxm.com, RT:  11/20/2014

3.  Howard Stern Info, Siriusxm.com/howard100, RT:  11/20/2014

4.  Subscriber Info, Siriusxm.com/corporate, RT:  11/20/2014

5.  Channel Listings, Maplecrestfordlincolnunion.com, RT:  11/21/2014

6.  Executives, Siriusxm.com/bios, RT:  11/20/2014

7.  James E. Meyer, Sbu.edu, RT:  11/20/2104

8.  Scott Greenstien, Imdb.com, RT:  11/21/2014

9.  Dara Altman, Newyorksocialdiary.com, RT:  11/21/2014

10.  Patrick L. Donnelly, Pli.edu, RT:  11/21/2014

11.  Sirius XM Financials, Investor.siriusxm.com, RT:  11/21/2014

12.  Sirius XM Stock, Finance.yahoo.com, RT:  11/21/2014

13.  Sirius XM Stock Google, Google.com, RT:  11/21/2014

14.  Competitors, Fool.com, RT:  11/21/2014

15.  Pandora Info, Pandora.com, RT:  11/21/2014

16.  Apple Info, Apple.com, RT:  11/21/2014

17.  Spotify Info, Support.spotify.com, RT:  11/22/2014

18.  Apple In Car Display, Apple.com, RT:  11/22/2014

19.  Merger Info, Investor.siriusxm.com, RT:  11/22/2014

20.  Sirius Satellite & XM Picture, Topclassactions.com, RT:  11/22/2014

21.  Satellite Info, Archive.fortune.com, RT:  11/22/2014

22.  Where Sirius Started, Radiomagonline.com, RT:  11/22/2014

23.  Sirius Mileage Coverage, Siriusxm.com/whatissiriusxm, RT:  11/22/2014

24.  List of Vehicles Sirius is in, Siriusxm.com/internetradio, RT:  11/22/2014

25.  Image of Vehicle List, Nytimes.com, RT:  11/22/2014

26.  List of Devices, Siriusxm.com/internetradio, RT:  11/22/2014

27.  Lawsuit, Nytimes.com, RT:  11/22/2014

28.  Copyright Image, Bloggless.com, RT:  11/22/2014

29.  Revenue, Nytimes.com, RT:  11/22/2014

30.  Jim Meyer Quote, Siriusxm.com, RT:  11/22/2014

Spotify

Posted on by 
by Helen Lu

[1] Spotify’s Logo

KEY EXECUTIVES

[2] Spotify Founders- Martin Lorentzon & Daniel Ek

[3] Jeff Levick- Chief Business Officer

 

[4] Steve Savoca- Head of Content

 

[5] Ken Parks- Chief Content Officer & Managing Director USA

SPOTIFY OVERVIEW

[6] Spotify’s sleek interface layout for their multi-platform service.

Spotify is a privately-owned, digital music streaming service that provides on-demand access to tracks. It is available on multiple platforms, including computers, mobile, tablets, and home entertainment systems. Originally founded in Sweden in 2006, Spotify launched in the United States in 2011; it is now available in 58 markets. [7]

Spotify offers listeners the free model, “made possible by ads,”  and the premium model for $9.99 monthly, which is ad-free, high-quality, and available offline. [8] With over 20 million songs, over 20,000 tracks added daily, and over 1.5 billion playlists, Spotify has accumulated 10 million active users and a total of 40 million active users. [9]

COMPETITORS

Rdio, Pandora, Rhapsody, Google Play Music, Beats, iTunes Radio, Music Unlimited, and Xbox Music are worthy contenders in this competitive space. Product reviews assess service quality with major factors include song catalog, user interface, support, and features. [10] Each racing for a market share, these top players in the market are making strategic ploys to stay afloat.

On November 12th, Youtube announced their own streaming service, Youtube Music Key for $9.99. It will be interesting to see how it will affect the music industry when it fully hits the market in 2015. [11]

[12] Spotify and The Echo Nest collaboration

In early March 2014, Spotify acquired The Echo Nest, a big data company to enhance the music discovery feature, forcing Rdio, Rhapsody, iHeartRadio, and Vevo to look elsewhere for a discovery algorithm. [13]

THE SPOTIFY STRATEGY

Spotify has successfully targeted college students, establishing a solid audience base and brand loyalty. With personal information confirming their status, Spotify offers students Spotify Premium for only $4.99. [13] 

[13] Spotify engages their target audience: college students and 18-24 year-olds.

COLLEGE CASE STUDY

Spotify’s tenacious grasp on college students’ listening is reflected in their recently released research report of the Top 40 Musical Schools in America. The findings are a close study of the musical norms in the schools.

[14] Detailed graphs document music-genre distribution and listening spikes, showing not only what students listen to but also how they listen.

The data that Spotify is able to collect can be utilized for targeted advertising and marketing campaigns today. Moreover, with such a large following of the developing youth, Spotify is not only able to make significant advancements with the invaluable information about  today, but accurate inferences about these soon-to-be adults tomorrow. [13]

#THATSONGWHEN

Spotify launched their #thatsongwhen campaign with advertising agencies Ogilvy & Mather and David to further engage their millennial base. #Thatsongwhen allows users to tie their emotional experiences to their favorite songs, to create, and to tell stories. The customization, personalization, and interactivity of a musical experience attracts and retains a young crowd. [15]

The stories are media clips that are charged with emotion, and of course, music. Don’t Go Chasing Girls is about a man’s early memory of his childhood crush that is easily triggered with TLC’s hit song, Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls. Stories and songs are updated and posted on a live feed.

AD TAKEOVER

Spotify is introducing two new advertising options for eager advertisers:

1. The dubbed Video Takeover, only available on desktops, allows brands to takeover the screen during 15-30 second advertising breaks.

2.The dubbed Sponsor Sessions forces mobile users to view a 15-30 second video on their mobile devices in order to proceed onto 30 minutes of uninterrupted streaming. [16]

McDonald’s, Universal Pictures, and Ford are just some of the major sponsors that have opted into this advertising innovation. [17]

[18] McDonald’s format and utilization of Spotify’s advertising product – Video Takeover.

SPOTIFY PARTNERSHIPS

VODAFONE

Everything is going mobile, and music is no exception. This rapid trend of playing and streaming music from a smartphone is particularly prevalent in Australia. Due to these recent findings, Vodafone Australia has partnered with Spotify to bundle in Spotify Premium for free with their monthly plan. A Spotify Premium subscription generally costs $11.99 Australian dollars each month. The exclusive offers with Spotify vary, and are known as the Red Plans. [19]

[20] Research shows that 1.5 million Australians stream music from their mobile devices.

Vodafone believes that Spotify Premium’s features complement and maximize the use of their faster network speeds, value plans, and expanding 4G network. Both the companies and the listeners are benefitting from this collaboration as the marriage of these digital services follow consumer trends and meets consumer needs. [21]

CARPLAY

Apple Carplay is an a new feature configured in select 2014 vehicles. Spotify is on board for this innovative ride as it has updated and fixed some bugs for this new multimedia system. [22] The music player allows users to access their Spotify accounts using a compatible iPhone.  [23] With a built-in display to play music, Carplay is an exclusive and luxurious market; the Ferrari FF is one of the few select cars with Carplay. Several automobile manufacturers, however, are making an effort to include and support this system in the future.  [24]

[24] Spotify collaborates with Apple Carplay to incorporate music services in the latest car models.

UBER

Uber is a hip taxi service, and Spotify is a hip streaming service. These two successful startups partner up for a new listening experience. Passengers can link their custom playlists to Uber vehicles for a fun ride. Although this new feature has started off in ten cities, it makes a big splash in the car service industry and the music industry. This partnership allows both companies to co-promote their respective brands and to change with the times. The service is for Spotify Premium account holders. [25]

[26] Spotify and Uber modernize the standard cab-ride as they join forces to create a new listening experience.

SPOTIFY CONTROVERSY

Taylor Swift pulled her entire catalogue from Spotify’s music database as she believes that it does not fairly compensate artists. [27] As a popular musician, her bold move and her public statements rejecting the streaming business model has made headlines for weeks. Fans and critics are responding to her decision with distaste as both parties point out that there are other viable services, such as Youtube and SoundCloud, to play her music. [28] While she recently accepted the first-ever Dick Clark Award for Excellence at the 2014 American Music Awards Ceremony, she added another snide comment jabbing at Spotify and streaming services again. [29] Jason Aldean has followed Swift’s footsteps, and pulled his new album Old Boots, New Dirt from Spotify. [30]

Spotify executive, Ek, combats this frenzy and reports that artists that use Spotify to promote their music actually sell more, and that Spotify has returned over $2 billion to music industry today. Top artists like Swift are set to project over $6 million in revenue a year. [31] Despite the financial debate and moral controversy, the Spotify team still hopes for Swift to change her mind. [32]

[33] Taylor Swift is a firm believer in the value of music, and that it should not be free. Swift has pulled her music catalogue from Spotify.

It is unlikely that many artists will join Swift’s banning of the digital streaming business, as it is the digital age.  Reports confirm that streaming services grew 28% in the first half of 2014. [26] Listeners’ habits changed; artists can sink, but digital streaming services will swim.

SPOTIFY: LOOKING AHEAD

 Despite the recent controversies, Spotify has achieved success with their recent collaborations; the student discount and the partnership with Vodafone have led Spotify subscriptions to increase by 42%. [28]  Spotify Family Plan has launched with popular demand and proven financial success with previous discount deals. The plan allows subscribers to add four family members to their account for half the price. [34]

Spotify’s name is globally recognized, and Spotify’s services are well integrated into the new digital age. Its key strategies and partnerships keep it on the bleeding edge of the music industry.

 Sources

1. Spotify’s Logo, Spotifypress.com, RT:11.29.2014

2. Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon, RT: 11.29.2014

3. Jeff Levick, RT: 11.29.2014

4. Steve Savoca, Spotifypress.com, RT:11.29.2014  

5. Ken Parks, Evolver.fm, RT: 11.29.2014

6. Spotify Interface Layout,  RT: 11.29.2014

7. Spotify Business Information, investing.businessweek.com, RT: 11.29.2014

8. Spotify Official Website, spotify.com/us, RT: 11.29.2014 

9. Spotify Press Information, spotify.com/information, RT: 11.29.2014 

10. “Spotify and competitors play to their musical strengths”, usatoday.com, RT: 11.29.2014 

11. “YouTube Launching Spotify-Style Paid Music Service”, TIME, RT: 11.29.2014

12. Spotify and The Echo Nest Collaboration, RT: 11.29.2014 

13. “Will Spotify’s hat trick help it pull ahead of competition?”, Fortune, RT: 11.29.2014

14. How Students Listen, spotify.com, RT: 11.29.2014 

15. “Spotify Ties Music to Personal Stories in Its New Ads”, adweek.com, RT: 11.29.2014

16. “Spotify Unveils Video Takeover Ad Product for Free Users”, telecompaper.com, RT: 11.29.2014

17. “Spotify is bringing video ‘takeover ads’ to its free service”, theverge.com, RT: 11.29.2014

18. Spotify Video Takeover Format, spotify.com, RT: 11.29.2014  

19. “Vodafone offers postpaid customers free Spotify Premium access”, CNET, RT: 11.29.2014

20. “Spotify partners with Vodafone Australia for down under listeners”, rainnews.com, RT: 11.29.2014

21. “Vodafone Australia and Spotify join forces!”, vodafone.com, RT: 11.29.2014

22. “Spotify adds support for Apple’s CarPlay in update to iOS app”, talkingnewmedia.com, RT: 11.29.2014 

23. “Spotify Adds CarPlay Support in Latest iOS Update”, macrumors.com, RT: 11.29.2014

24. “Apple CarPlay comes to Pioneer stereos as Spotify adds support”, engadget.com, RT: 11.29.2014

25. “Tuneup, redefined: You can now Spotify your Uber ride”, CNET, RT: 11.29.2014 

26. Uber and Spotify Partnership, Uber.com, RT: 11.29.2014

27. “Taylor Swift is right about music, wrong about Spotify, says CEO Ek”, CNET, RT: 11.29.2014

28. “Why Taylor Swift Will Lose Her Battle With Spotify”, TIME, RT: 11.29.2014

29. “AMAs: Taylor Swift Continues Anti-Streaming-Service Stance in Dick Clark Award Speech”, hollywoodreporter.com, RT: 11.29.2014 

30. “Jason Aldean Agrees with Taylor Swift, WIll Remove New Album From Spotify”, musictimes.com, RT: 11.29.2014 

31. “$2 Billion and Counting”, spotify.com, RT: 11.29.2014

32. “Here’s Why Taylor Swift Pulled Her Music From Spotify”, TIME, RT: 11.29.2014

33. “Taylor Swift and the Whole Spotify Thing”, uloop.com, RT: 11.29.2014

34. “Spotify launching family plan with cheaper subscriptions for families”, theguardian.com, RT: 11.29.2014

Sirius XM Radio

Posted on by

by Allie Reeves

Sirius Logo

[1] SiriusXM Logo

The Sirius Story:

Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is a satellite radio service that offers commercial-free streaming on over 175 channels in the United States and Canada. These channels are comprised of every type of radio – music, news, sports, talk, and more [2]. It is currently the largest radio broadcaster and caters to about 26.7 million subscribers [3].

SiriusXM Programming

[30] SiriusXM Programming

Currently, the most popular way for subscribers to enjoy SiriusXM Radio is in the comfort of their cars. SiriusXM has arrangements with over forty automakers for installation of their services directly into the vehicle [3]. However, as of recent, SiriusXM has become available to stream directly online in your home or office, as well as an app that can be accessed on Smartphones and Tablets.

SiriusXM currently offers three different packages: Sirius Select, Sirius All Access, and Sirius Mostly Music. The packages can be bought on a monthly or annual basis and range in price from $9.99 to $199 [4].

Most Popular Packages

[4] Most Popular Packages for SiriusXM Customers

The Sirius Team: 

Scott Greenstein, President & Chief Content Officer

[6] Scott Greenstein, President & Chief Content Officer

James E. Meyer, CEO

[5] James E. Meyer, CEO

 

 

 

 

 

 

Patrick L. Donnelly, Executive Vice President and General Counsel

[7] Patrick L. Donnelly, Executive Vice President and General Counsel

Finances:

Screen Shot 2014-12-01 at 2.30.57 PM

[31] SiriusXM finances as of December 1, 2014

SiriusXM recently released their 2014 Third Quarter Results, which revealed a 10% increase in revenue since this time last year, putting the company at a record high of $1.1 billion. This is higher than analysts originally anticipated for the company, as they put the company’s assumed revenue at $1.04 billion. The company also increased its subscriber count by 1.2 million [8].

Interest in shares of SiriusXM increased rapidly during the month of November. As of November 14th, there has been an increase of 2.8% since October 31st up to 247, 283,696. The company is now up to a $3.75 price on their stock [32].

Competitors:

Apple Inc. Logo

[11] Apple Inc. Logo

SiriusXM’s current competitors are Apple and iHeartMedia, as well as regular terrestrial radio. Pandora and Spotify have also been named as competitors, but in a recent interview with James Meyer, CEO of SiriusXM, the two services were ruled out.

iHeartMedia Logo

[12] iHeartMedia Logo

Meyer explained these companies are streaming services, which he doesn’t view as competition, but as its own distinct technology. Meyer also stated that out of them all, terrestrial radio is their primary competition, with 220 million people that use it everyday [9].

However, with Apple’s new CarPlay, that might not be the case for much longer. CarPlay gives drivers access to all of their music, podcasts, and audiobooks with the touch of a button, and major auto companies like Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and Ferrari are already on board. The venture is still in its early stages, but since SiriusXM is primarily used by vehicle subscribers, CarPlay could end up being a serious competitor [10].

Apple CarPlay

[13] Apple CarPlay

The Sirius Edge:

What sets SiriusXM apart from its competitors at Apple, and iHeartMedia is the company’s original content that can only be accessed through subscriptions to SiriusXM.

The Howard Stern Show

[15] The Howard Stern Show, one of the most popular talk shows on SiriusXM

Some of the most popular original content shows include The Howard Stern Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and NFL Radio, although many more are available [3]. This original content helps keep   subscribers tuning in, and keeps SiriusXM’s churn rate at an impressive 1.9%. It also helps the company keep their acquisition costs low, which has recently become problematic for companies like Pandora [14].

SiriusXM Town Hall Event

[17] SiriusXM Town Hall Event in the Fishbowl

SiriusXM is also known for their “Town Hall” Series. These intimate gatherings take place in the SiriusXM fishbowl, a private listening studio, where entertainers sit down with a live studio audience comprised of about 30 SiriusXM subscribers who have won an invitation to the event [16].

Taylor Swift for SiriusXM

[19] Taylor Swift at a Town Hall Event for SiriusXM

Recently, SiriusXM was able to snag Taylor Swift for a Town Hall Event. Subscribers had the chance to ask her questions and listen to songs off of her newest album, 1989. This event comes after Swift’s recent decision to pull her music off of Spotify, giving even more leverage to SiriusXM [18].

The Today Show for SiriusXM:

This past year, SiriusXM announced a major deal with NBC, in which simulcasts of the hit NBC show, The Today Show, would be broadcasted on the satellite radio service. The format of bringing a morning show to radio has been done before, unsuccessfully. However, what makes this different is that SiriusXM will not be airing segments of the popular morning show, they will be airing the program identically as it airs on television [20].

The Today Show

[24] The Today Show

This move was a strategic boost for both companies. The show airs during popular morning drive time, when radio listening is at its highest. The deal will allow NBC to access SiriusXM’s 26 million listeners, and SiriusXM hopes to draw in more subscribers that are already fans of the show.

 

[21]

Suing Sirius:

SiriusXM has come under fire in the past year over use of music recorded before 1972. More recently, individual bands have started going after the company, claiming that they deserve compensation. Although songs recorded before February 15th, 1972 are not covered by federal copyright law, some artists and labels have been seeking protection under individual state laws – and the courts have been agreeing.  As of November 17th, the 1960s rock band, The Turtles, has had two victories against the satellite radio company [22].

The Turtles, 1960s

[25] Rock Band The Turtles in the 1960s

The court ruled that music recorded before 1972 still has a public performance right and that digital services cannot use it without permission or compensation. SiriusXM has requested to dismiss the lawsuit, but it has been rejected. The judge ruled that SiriusXM has until December 5th to show any factual issues that would be cause for a trial. If none are found, she will rule in favor of the band, and “assess damages” [23].

What’s Next:

Joel Osteen

[28] Joel Osteen

SiriusXM recently announced that Golf Hall of Fame member Sir Nick Faldo will receive his own show, where he will talk golf and get to know golf enthusiasts, while they get a chance to know him [26]. SiriusXM also launched a new pop channel, Venus, as well as adding some of their popular internet only channels like Y2Kountry and Utopia to their satellite lineup. Joel Osteen Radio will also be coming to SiriusXM, a station rooted in the power of “positive thinking with messages of inspiration” [27].

[33] Holiday music channels at SiriusXM

[33] Holiday music channels at SiriusXM

SiriusXM is currently celebrating the sounds of the holiday season with the addition of two new Holiday Music channels, Holly and Holiday Traditions. They plan to release more within the upcoming month [33].

Also effective January 2015, there will be an increase of 1.4 percentage points in the U.S. Music Royalty Fee applied to most SiriusXM audio packages, in order to fund royalty payments to the music industry [29].

Sources

1. SiriusXM’s Logo 2014, Fbnstatic.com, RT: 11/20/2014

2. What is SiriusXM?, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

3. Corporate Overview, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

4. Our Most Popular Packages, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

5. Chief Executive Officer, SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

6. President & Chief Content Officer, SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

7. Executive Vice President and General Counsel, SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

8. “SiriusXM Reports Third Quarter 2014 Results”, Investor.siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

9. “Sirius XM CEO: I Don’t See Spotify As A Direct Competitor”, Benzinga.com, RT: 11/22/2014

10. “Is Apple’s New Toy a Sirius XM or Pandora Killer?”, Fool.com, RT: 11/22/2014

11. Apple Inc. Logo, Worldofdtcmarketing.com, RT: 11/22/2014

12. iHeartMedia Logo, Billboard, RT: 11/24/2014

13. Apple Car Play, Uncrate.com, RT: 11/24/2014

14. “Sirius XM’s Main Edge Over Competitors”, Fool.com, RT: 11/28/2014

15. The Howard Stern Show, Tuaw.com, RT: 11/22/2014

16. SiriusXM Town Hall, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

17. SiriusXM Fishbowl Event, Howstuffworks.com, RT: 11/28/2014

18. “Taylor Swift’s Exclusive 1989 “Town Hall” to Air Live on SiriusXM”, Investor.siriusxm.com, RT: 11/24/2014

19. Taylor Swift for SiriusXM, SiriusXM Blog, RT: 11/22/2014

20. “Starting in June, ‘Today’ Will Simulcast on SiriusXM”, New York Times, RT: 11/28/2014

21. Today Show Radio on SiriusXM, YouTube, RT: 11/28/2014

22. “Rock band wins again in copyright battle against Sirius XM”, The Times of India, RT: 11/28/2014

23. “New York Court Delivers Third Strike Against Sirius XM on Pre-1972 Sound Recordings”, Sound Exchange, RT: 11/28/2014

24. Today Show Logo, Momsdemandaction.org, RT: 11/28/2014

25. The Turtles, Allmusic.com, RT: 11/28/2014

26. “Sir Nick Faldo to Host SiriusXM Show”, Techsonian.com, RT: 11/28/2014

27. New Channels and Lineup Changes, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

28. Joel Osteen, Lightsource.com, RT: 11/28/2014

29. “U.S. Music Royalty Fee Effective January 5, 2015”, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/28/2014

30. SiriusXM Programming, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

31. SiriusXM Financials, Google, RT: 12/1/2014

32. SiriusXM Stock Information, Watchlistnews.com, RT: 12/1/2014

33. Holiday Music at SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 12/1/2014

Relativity Media

Posted on by 
by Jason Tuckman
Relativity_Media_-_2013_(Free_Birds)

Photo courtesy of logos.wikia.com. (1)

Relativity Media

Contact Information: (2) 

Address: 9242 Beverly Blvd., Suite 300, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Phone Number: 310-724-7700

URL: http://www.relativitymedia.com

Twitter: @Relativity 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/relativity

An Overview of Relativity Media:

Focusing on the content creation and distribution of television, film, sports, music, fashion, and digital, Relativity Media was founded in 2004 by CEO Ryan Kavanaugh. (3) Relativity Media seeks to integrate different aspects of its content throughout all of its mediums, providing the best entertainment for its customers.  Relativity Media Studios, the largest division of the company, has produced over 200 films such as “Don Jon”, “Out of the Furnace“, “Movie 43“, and “The Pursuit of Happyness“.  The company has made more than $17 billion in box office revenue and has earned 60 Oscar nominations. (4)

Key Executives: 

CEO: Ryan Kavanaugh

President: Tucker Tooley

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Co-Chief Operating Officer: Happy Walters

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Co-Chief Operating Officer: Gregory Shamo

Photos and Info. Courtesy of http://www.relativitymedia.com/About.aspx (5)

Financials:

According to Ryan Kavanaugh, this year Relativity Media plans to make $1 billion in box office revenue, although the company is privately held and there is no official public documentation of revenue. (6) Kavanaugh believes in tight budgets that don’t necessarily need to be hits to make a profit. (7)  This strategy is called the “Monte Carlo” approach, which is mainly used on Wall Street.  This approach uses information about a possible movie and analyzes whether or not it will make a profit.  Considering actors, budget, genre, and release time, Relativity Media is able to figure out which possible movies will be hits, and which ones will be flops. (8) Therefore, the company is able to use small budgets to make small profits, which add up over time to make Relativity Media successful.  Currently, Relativity Media is privately held but is planning on going public in the next year once enough equity is raised. (9)

Current Movies:

Relativity Media has released nine films this year, four of which are still in theaters.  The films still in theaters are “The November Man”, “Beyond the Lights”, and “The Best of Me”.  “Hector and the Search for Happiness”, an action comedy staring Simon Pegg, was released in select theaters during the month of September. (10)

“Hector and the Search for Happiness”

HATSFH_FIN_07-IN THEATERS THIS FALL-SMALL-web_{04488678-6e2e-e411-b444-4040e990bee0}

Photo courtesy of www.relativitymedia.com (11)

Directed by Peter Chelsom, “Hector and the Search for Happiness” tells the story of a psychiatrist who feels guilty that his patients aren’t getting happier, leading him on a quest to understand the true meaning of happiness. (12)  The movie was only released to 183 theaters and made $938,954 in revenue. (13) It garnered negative reviews, receiving only 31% on Rotten Tomatoes.

“The November Man”

The_November_Man_poster

Photo courtesy of www.relativitymedia.com (14)

Directed by Roger Donaldson, and staring Pierce Brosnan, Luke Bracey, and Olga Kurylenko, “The November Man” is an action thriller about a retired spy who must come out of retirement for a personal mission.  It is based off the novel “There are No Spies”, by Bill Granger. (15) So far, it has made $32 million dollars globally in box office revenue.  It’s budget is disclosed, and came in sixth for its opening weekend in late August, way behind “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”. (16) It received negative reviews, with only 34% on Rotten Tomatoes.

“The Best of Me”

001_bestofme_poster

Photo courtesy of www.relativitymedia.com (17)

Based off the Nicholas Sparks novel, “The Best of Me” is a drama/romance film that tells the story of two high school sweethearts that, after 20 years, are drawn back to their hometown after the death of a friend.  They rekindle their high school love, but realize that there are problems after being apart for so long.  The movie is directed by Michael Hoffman and stars Michelle Monaghan, James Marsden, and Luke Bracey. (18) Ranked fifth in its opening weekend, “The Best of Me” has made just under $33 million in global box office revenue, $25 million domestically. (19) It also received an underwhelming 10% on Rotten Tomatoes.  In late October, B4U, a Bollywood Film and TV company invested $100 million in Relativity Media to make a version of “The Best of Me” for audiences in India. (20)

“Beyond the Lights”

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Photo courtesy of www.relativitymedia.com (21)

Watch the trailer here.  Courtesy of youtube.com

Relativity Media’s most recent film, “Beyond the Lights” opened on November 14, 2014.  Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, and staring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Nate Parker, and Minnie Driver, “Beyond the Lights” tells the story of a young popstar who falls in love with a cop who is striving to become a prominent politician.  Fame tests their relationship as they struggle to find peace in the madness that surrounds their lives. (22) The film has made $6.2 million in box office revenue during its opening weekend, and currently has $12 million in total domestic revenue, with a reported budget of $7 million, and received 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. (23)

On August 12, 2014, Relativity Media hired Matt Alvarez as EVP of Production and President of Relativity Studio’s newly formed multicultural division. Alvarez produced hits such as “Ride Along”, the “Barbershop” franchise, and Relativity’s recent movie, “Beyond the Lights”. He will focus on growing the studio’s slate with more diverse filmmakers. (24)

Recent News:

On October 2nd, Relativity Media announced that One West Bank Group and Dune Capital Management is set to purchase Elliot Management’s stake in Relativity Media, along with Ryan Kavanaugh himself. The purchase is led by Ryan Kavanaugh, One West Bank Group and Dune Capital Management’s founder, Steven Mnuchin, along with some other unnamed private investors. (25) This investment shift may hint at secret preparations for Relativity’s IPO release in the next year. Kavanaugh will still be the largest individual shareholder of the company and no specific financials were released. (26) Steven Mnucin is no stranger to Hollywood. He is known for helping to finance “Gravity” and “Avatar”.

bh_placeholder_315x207

Photo courtesy of blumhouse.com (27)

On November 4th, Relativity acquired the rights to distribute “Lazarus”, a horror film, in the U.S. This movie comes from Jason Blum’s production company, Blumhouse, and is set to be released on February 20th, 2015. The movie stars Mark Duplass, Olivia Wilde, Evan Peters, and Donald Glover. Blumhouse is known for box office hits such as the “Paranormal Activity” franchise as well as recent success, “Ouija”. “Lazarus” is about a group of medical students who discover a way to bring dead patients back to life. (28)

In Development:

“Not Without Hope”

not without hope book cover_{5cc99a63-5594-e311-af13-4040e990bee0}

Photo courtesy of www.relativitymedia.com (29)

Based on the best selling memoir by Nick Schuyler, “Not Without Hope” tells the true story of four NFL players who go on a fishing trip in the Gulf of Mexico that turns deadly when the ship capsizes, forcing the friends to cling to the the capsized boat while a storm rages around them. (30) This gruesome tale of friendship will star Dwayne Johnson and has recently begun script adaptation by Nicholas Mariani. (31)

“Demon House”

17th Annual Hollywood Film Awards - Portraits

Lee Daniels, Director.  Photo courtesy of thereelnetwork.net (32)

Directed by Lee Daniels, this movie will tell the story of Latoya Ammons and her family, whom have been possessed by demonic spirits for the past two years.  Turn Left Productions, with owners Jackson Nguyen and Todd Crites will finance, produce, and distribute the film along with Relativity Media and producer Bruce Cohen. (33) This will be an interesting change for Lee Daniels, known for “The Butler”, who is now taking a turn at making a thriller.

Sources:

(1) Relativity Media Logo From 2013.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.

(2) Relativity Media Contact Information From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.

(3) Founded From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.

(4) Relativity Media About From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.

(5) Relativity Media Executives From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(6) Relativity Media Profitability From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(7) Tight Budgets Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(8) Monte Carlo Approach Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(9) IPO Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(10) 2014 Films From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.  
(11) Hector and the Search for Happiness Movie Poster From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.  
(12) Hector and the Search for Happiness Synopsis From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.  
(13) Hector and the Search for Happiness Box Office From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.  
(14) The November Man Movie Poster From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(15) The November Man Synopsis From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(16) The November Man Box Office From 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(17) The Best of Me Movie Poster From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(18) The Best of Me Synopsis From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(19) The Best of Me Box Office From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(20) The Best of Me Bollywood From 30 October 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.   
(21) Beyond the Lights Movie Poster From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(22) Beyond the Lights Synopsis From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(23) Beyond the Lights Box Office From 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(24) Matt Alvarez From 12 August 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(25) Relativity Media Purchase From 2 October 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(26) IPO Holdings From 2 October 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(27) Blumhouse Productions Logo Retrieved 30 November 2014. 
(28) Lazarus From 4 November 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(29) Not Without Hope Book Cover Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(30) Not Without Hope Synopsis Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(31) Not Without Hope Development From 10 October 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.
(32) Lee Daniels Retrieved 30 November 2014.  
(33) Demon House Development From 12 November 2014.  Retrieved 30 November 2014.

Pandora Radio

Posted on by 
by Ally Thibault

pandora-banner-1[8]

Music has always been a uniting force across the entirety of the human race. It brings people together, projects ideas and opinions across generations, and encapsulates emotions that simply cannot be preserved otherwise. It is a timeless source of comfort and entertainment. While traditional radio has always been a reliable outlet to access music, citizens of the digital age tend to crave more than just what is given to them. People want to hear the music they like.  Seeing this trend in listener niche preferences, Pandora Radio founder Tim Westergren channeled his passion and knowledge of music and created one of the most successful personalized online radio platforms to date.

Pandora Radio is an online radio station and application that allows users to search songs, artists, and albums and creates customized stations featuring music similar to the choice of the user. The creative and analytical muscle behind Pandora comes from the Music Genome Project [3], which is known as “the most comprehensive analysis of music ever undertaken”. The project has collected hundreds of details about virtually every song ever recorded, which allows Pandora to sort songs into all kinds of diverse categories. The main purpose of Pandora is not only to provide a steady stream of music to listeners, but also to introduce them to new and current music akin to their already established tastes. Their overall aims are summed up most succinctly in their mission statement: “To play only music you’ll love”. [1]

40_tim-westergren-sync_01[9]

Pandora Media, Inc. was originally founded in January 2000 in Oakland, California, where it is now headquartered. Founder Tim Westergren developed the Music Genome Project with the intention of creating playlists tailored to the interests of music listeners. He initially considered licensing the music recommendation service to other major companies, but this proved to flop in terms of generated profit, receiving only a $20,000 fee from Barnes & Noble.com for further development. After pitching the idea to countless venture capitalists, he finally settled on the idea of an internet radio website powered by the genome. In the early years following its launch in 2005, Pandora encountered multiple close brushes with bankruptcy as the company experimented with different business models and faced steep increases in music royalty fees.  It started quite modestly, used initially by friends and family of Westergren and his colleagues. Since then Pandora has caught fire — in January of 2012, Pandora surpassed the milestone of 125 million registered users.  [2]

USA - Business - Media[10]

Now commandeered by CEO Brian McAndrews, Pandora’s business model has improved in sustainability: centered around generating revenue primarily through online advertisements and, on a lesser scale, subscription fees, and paying royalties to the artists whose music it features. Their third quarter earnings results yielded an increase of $0.07 per share with an overall quarterly revenue of $180 million (positive surprise of +1.02%), with analysts predicting a continued increase on both fronts into the fourth quarter. [4] Over the course of the months following March of 2014, Pandora’s market share increased from 9.11% to 9.13%. In addition, their listener hours have grown 28% year over year in May 2014. Overall, Pandora’s profitability has improved despite royalty price hikes as they have fine-tuned their ad-targeting strategies. [5]

As the online radio industry has seen a surge in popularity over the past couple of years, many competing companies like Spotify have entered the market space to take a gander at the boundless range of music-loving consumers. As a result, Pandora has been pressed into making creative changes and additions to their market appeal strategy in order to distinguish themselves from their competition. The ability to provide their customers with something different and enticing is crucial in maintaining their relevance in the internet radio sphere. With this is mind, Pandora initiated a series of live concerts available for free exclusively for their listeners this past September. They partnered with Lexus to sponsor the pop-up concerts, which took place in Southern California. The performing artists included popular, current acts like MAGIC!, Kongos, and Nico & Vinz. The strategy of distributing the invitations to the concerts was intended to reward Pandora listeners for their loyalty. Pandora determined which users had created unique stations specifically for the artists who would be performing and extended invitations to those who showed a particularly strong interest in the musicians. This allowed Pandora listeners to truly connect with the artists they love, based on how they interacted with them through the online radio platform. Tommy Page, Head of Music Partnerships at Pandora, explained that the concert series demonstrated their “ability to leverage [their] data to create personalized experiences with the fans, as well as…the inroads [they’ve] made with the music industry”. This live concert experience option was unique to Pandora listeners and part of the initiative to differentiate them from their competitors. [6]

Pandora’s “thumbs up” button also brought artists to life for listeners in other ways. On September 5th, a few lucky listeners who clicked the button during a song by classically trained violinist Lindsey Stirling were suddenly prompted by an invitation to video chat with the artist herself.  If they accepted, they were treated to a private conversation and performance from Ms. Stirling from her studio in LA. Since then, Pandora’s #ThumbMoments campaign has brought musicians to life for many of their listeners. These “thumb gifts” will continue to reward listeners for choosing Pandora by granting them access to totally unique experiences that can’t be found anywhere else. Pandora’s Chief Marketing Officer Simon Fleming-Wood explained that the experience aims to hyperbolize that feeling you get when the “perfect song” comes on your Pandora station, and the result is truly emotional. [7]

This fall, Pandora has made great strides in branching out to bring artists closer to listeners. They have begun to focus more of their marketing muscle towards interactive experiences with the music they feature in an attempt to set themselves apart from their competition. Pandora continues to evolve as the industry changes and is certainly a company to keep an eye on in the months to come.

 

Sources

[1] About Pandora Media. (n.d.). Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://www.pandora.com/about

[2] Clifford, S. (2007, October 1). Pandora’s Long Strange Trip. Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://www.inc.com/magazine/20071001/pandoras-long-strange-trip_pagen_2.html

[3] Pegoraro, R. (2014, May 24). Pandora’s “Music Genome Project” explores the cold hard facts of how we interact with music. Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://boingboing.net/2014/05/24/pandoras-music-genome-proj.html

[4] Earnings & Estimates Summary – PANDORA MEDIA INC (P). (2014, November 28). Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/earnings/earnings.asp?ticker=P

[5] Team, T. (2014, July 22). Pandora Earnings Preview: Growing Market Share and Improving Monetization in Focus. Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2014/07/22/pandora-earnings-preview-growing-market-share-and-improving-monetization-in-focus/

[6] Castillo, M. (2014, September 17). How Pandora Mined Data to Create Lexus-Backed Concert Series. Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/pandora-mines-data-create-lexus-backed-concert-series-160177

[7] Newman, A. (2014, September 21). A Thumbs-Up Brings Favorite Artists to Life For Pandora Listeners. Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/22/business/media/a-thumbs-up-brings-musicians-to-life-for-pandora-listeners-.html?_r=0

8] Pandora Radio Logo Banner. Digital image. SoulBridging. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://soulbridging.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/pandora-banner.jpg>.

9] Sprague, Jonathan. Tim Westergren. Digital image. My Ford Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.myfordmag.com/faces/tim-westergren-sync>.

10] McDermid, Brendan. Brian McAndrews. Digital image. Reuters. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20130911&t=2&i=793057292&w=580&fh=&fw=&ll=&pl=&r=CBRE98A1PNM00>.

Viacom

Posted on by 
By Sam Mackoff
[1] Viacom Logo

[1] Viacom Logo

ABOUT VIACOM

Viacom, short for Video and Audio Communications, is a mass media company that produces content globally across television, movies, online and mobile platforms.  Viacom’s media networks reach about 700 million global subscribers, making it one of the world’s largest media conglomerate [2].  Viacom operates about 170 leading entertainment brands including MTV Networks, VH1, BET Networks, Comedy Central, CMT, SPIKE, Nickelodeon Networks, Paramount Pictures and more [3].

Television Networks 

[4] Viacom's Media Brands

[4] Viacom’s Media Brands

Viacom has a large variety of networks that represent a diverse collection of programming. From Nickelodeon, the leading brand in children’s entertainment, to Comedy Central, the number one brand in comedic television, Viacom continues to produce original content that is relevant to all different audience members [4].  Some of Viacom’s leading shows are Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants, MTV’s Teen Wolf and Awkward, Comedy Central’s South Park and many more [5].

Film

Paramount Pictures logo

[6] Paramount Pictures Logo

Paramount Pictures Corporation is a production and distribution studio for film.  It is a subsidiary of Viacom.  Paramount distributes content from DreamWorks Animation, Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Marvel Studios, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies [4]. Paramount is ranked as the fourth highest grossing film distributor [7]. Some of Paramount’s notable films are, “Transformers”, “Indiana Jones”, “Star Trek”, “Titanic”, and “Forrest Gump” [8].

 FINANCIALS

Viacom is a publicly held.  This year, Viacom did well financially with its media networks revenue, but did not do well financially in film entertainment.  The media networks revenue had a $462 million increase to $9.7 billion by the end of 2013 [9].   The film entertainment revenues had a $538 million decrease from the previous year to $4.3 billion by the end of 2013 [9].  Viacom’s net earnings still increased 2% from 2012 to 2013, from $2.3 billion in 2012 to $2.4 billion in 2013 [9].

KEY EXECUTIVES

[10] Philippe Dauman, President and Chief Executive Officer

[10] Philippe Dauman,
President and Chief Executive Officer

[11] Thomas E. Dooley, Chief Operating Officer

[11] Thomas E. Dooley,
Chief Operating Officer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RECENT NEWS
Viacom and Google Call a Truce

image6611550x

[12] Google Vs. Viacom

After seven years of battling in court, Viacom and Google have settled the copyright infringement lawsuit, in which neither company exchanged money to the other.  Viacom filed a $1 billion lawsuit in 2007 against YouTube, which is owned by Google, stating that there were billions of dollars in damages for copyright infringement by uploading unauthorized clips from Viacom programming.  After years of arguing, Viacom and YouTube released a settlement statement saying, “This settlement reflects the growing collaborative dialogue between our two companies on important opportunities, and we look forward to working more closely together” [13].

Viacom Teams Up with Tumblr

Tumblr-partnership-with-Viacom

[14] Tumblr and Viacom Partnership

Viacom announced an exclusive partnership with the popular blogging website, Tumblr. The two companies together will offer co-branded campaigns and content for shows and events for Viacom’s networks through the 2014 Upfront Season.  This partnership marks Viacom as the first television programmer to develop a marketing partnership with Tumblr. Viacom’s partnership with Tumblr creates a unique opportunity for Viacom to use this creative platform with its advertisers in order to reach a large audience because of its major social activity.  On the consumer end, it allows users to view content in a fun and interactive way [15].

RELEASES

[16] “The Wolf of Wall Street”, directed by Martin Scorsese

The Wolf of Wall Street

The dark comedy, “The Wolf of Wall Street”, directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, is based on the true story of Jordan Belfort’s life. The film takes you through the New York stockbroker’s journey from rags to riches, starting in penny stocks to running an extremely successful firm.  This film has had major success worldwide.  The high admiration has earned the film a Golden Globe and five Academy Award nominations [17]. Surpassing all Christmas sales in theaters on its holiday release date [18], the film made $10 million on its opening day and over $18 million on its opening weekend [19]. This film has accumulated grosses of $116.9 million domestically and $272.7 million in the foreign market [19].

 

001_Noah_poster

[20] “Noah”, directed by Darren Aronofsky

Noah

The recent release of the biblical inspired film, “Noah”, directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Russell Crowe, is inspired by the biblical story of Noah’s Ark.  Noah is chosen by God to take on a mission to rescue the innocent before an apocalyptic flood hits the world.  This film ranked #1 at the box office on its opening weekend on March 28th [21].  “Noah” brought in a diverse audience including men and women of all ages that were Christian, Catholic Latino and African American [22].  “Noah” has faced a sizable decline with a 68% drop since its release [23].  Predictions say that this number will increase during the weekend of Easter because of the faith based audience [24].  “Noah” has made $93.3 million domestically and $197.4 million in the foreign market [21].

 

 UPCOMING RELEASES

Nickelodeon Introduces a New Awards Show

8-Kids-Choice-Sports-Awards-2014-350x348

[25] Michael Strahan, Future Host of Kids Choice Sports

Nickelodeon announced a new award show called Kids Choice Sports, hosted by former football player, Michael Strahan, set to debut this summer.  Kids Choice Sports give viewers the opportunity to have a voice in the show by voting for their favorite teams, players and sports moments as well as selecting the stars to get slimed.  In additions to the awards, the event will also have a musical performance, competitions against athletes and slimed filled sports stunts [26].  Kids Choice Sports has the potential to bring in a whole new audience of parents and children who are interested in sports, as well as other viewers who want to be a part of the additional events of the awards show.

Candid Camera Returns After 66 Years

Candid-Camera-creator-Allen-Funt-499x400
[27] Allen Funt, the Original Host of Candid Camera

TV Land announced that it is bringing back a new version of the 1940’s show, Candid Camera.  Candid Camera is a show that captures the reactions of people in unusual situations using hidden cameras.  Peter Funt, the son of the host and creator of the original show, will be co-producing Candid Camera.  There are 10 new episodes that are set to air this summer [28].

 

Transformers To Release Fourth Film

The fourth Transformers film called, “Transformers: Age of Extinction”, is hitting the theater this summer.  This film was directed by Michael Bay and has notable actors staring in it such as Mark Wahlberg, Nicola Peltz, and Jack Reynor [29].  This popular franchise has earned $2.6 billion in the global box office.  The bar for this film was set very high after the last film, “Transformers: Dark of the Moon”, earning $1.1 billion globally.  This film is set to release June 27th [30].

Trailer [31]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Recreated in a Live Action Film

“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” is returning to the screen in a live action film this summer. Producer Michael Bay and director Jonathan Liesmasman, are working together to recreate the story that was originally based off of a comic series [32].  Rob Moore, vice chairman of Paramount said, “Michael Bay is committed to making sure young audiences have a reason to flock back to your theaters” [33]. This action comedy film is about four trained ninja turtles that work together to fight off evil.  This summer blockbuster, starring Megan Fox, Noel Fisher, Will Arnet, Jeremy Howard and Alan Ritchso, is set to release August 8th [32].

Trailer [34]

Sources

[1] Viacom’s Logo, Adweek.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[2] About Viacom, Viacom.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[3] “Viacom: Veteran Leading the Way”, Investing Daily, 12/31/2013, RT: 4/17/2014

[4] Viacom Brands, Viacom.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[5] Most Popular TV Shows, TV.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[6] Paramount Pictures Logo, Nickelodeon.Wikia.com, RT: 4/18/14

[7] Leading Distributors- 1995-2014, The-Numbers.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[8] Paramount All Time Box Office Results, BoxOfficeMojo.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[9] Viacom Inc.- Annual Report, Viacom.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[10] Philippe Dauman, Trialx.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[11] Thomas E. Dooley, CNN.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[13] “Google and Viacom Settle Copyright-Infringement Lawsuit over YouTube”, Variety, 3/18/2014, RT: 4/19/2014

[14] Viacom and Tumblr, YourNewSticker.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[15] “Yahoo’s Tumblr First TV Ad Deal Is with Viacom”, Variety, 3/20/2014, RT: 4/19/2014

[16] Wolf of Wall Street Poster, UBCFilmSociety.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[17] Wolf of Wall Street Awards, IMDB.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[18] “‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Poised for No. 1 at Christmas Box Office with $10 Million”, Variety, 12/25/13, RT: 4/19/14

[19] Box Office Results, BoxOfficeMojo.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[20] Noah Poster, MovieFanatic.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[21] Box Office Results, BoxOfficeMojo.com, RT: 4/19/14

[22] “‘Noah’ sails to estimated $44-Million Opening at Box Office”, Los Angeles Times, 3/30/2014, RT: 4/19/14

[23] “North America: ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Sets New April Record with $96.2M”, BoxOffice.com, 4/6/14, RT: 4/19/14

[24] “‘Heaven is for Real’ Posts Strong Opening Day Returns”, BoxOffice.com, 4/17/14, RT: 4/19/2014

[25] Kids Choice Sports Picture, TVByTheNumbers.zap2it.com, RT: 4/20/14

[26] “Nick Launching Sports Award Show”, BigStory.ap.org, 3/13/214, RT: 4/20/14

[27] Allen Funt, rtvfmediastudies.tcu.edu, RT: 4/20/14

[28] “Candid Camera: TV Land Reviving Classic Series for Summer”, TVSeriesFinale.com, 4/9/14, RT: 4/20/14

[29] Transformers Cast and Crew, IMDB.com, RT: 4/20/14

[30] “‘Transformers: Age of Extinction’ to Kick Start New Trilogy”, Variety, 4/11/14, RT: 4/20/14

[31] Transformers: Age of Extinction Trailer, Youtube, 3/5/2014, RT: 4/20/2014

[32] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Cast and Crew, IMDB.com, RT: 4/20/14

[33] “Paramount Kicks Off CinemaCon With ‘Ninja Turtles,’ ‘Transformers’ Footage”, Variety, 3/24/14, RT: 4/20/14

[34] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Trailer, Youtube, 3/27/2014, RT: 4/20/2014

Pandora Radio

Posted on by 
By Andrew Saltman

History

Pandora Internet Radio is an online music streaming service that provides listeners with automated playlists based on their likes and listening habits among many other things. Founded by Will Glaser, Jon Kraft, and Tim Westergren in 2000, Pandora was designed to bring users individualized radio stations with great music and no “junk.” Westergren currently sits on the Board of Directors, and Brian McAndrews serves as the company’s CEO. The Music Genome Project is the sophisticated formula that analyzes each song using up to 450 distinct musical characteristics by trained music analysts. The analysts typically have four year degrees in music theory or composition and had to pass a selective screening process and complete an extensive training program in order to accurately analyze songs for the project. Pandora does not use any listening machines to analyze any song, as all analysis comes from the human analysts. [2]

Pandora users are able to create up to 100 unique stations (or playlists) based off an artist, genre or composer. Users are allowed to skip six songs per hour per station, and up to 24 skips across all stations per day. Pandora also allows users to refine their stations by liking or disliking each track they hear. Pandora continues to learn listening habits as users continue to listen and like songs. The more someone uses their Pandora account, the more personalized the stations become. [4]

Financials

Pandora got it’s start with investments from both angel investors and venture capitalists, and in June of 2011 the company went public through an IPO. According to Pandora’s 2013 Annual Report, stock prices traded on the NYSE started at $16.00 per share on June 14th, 2011. At the end of the 4th quarter in January of 2013 the high stock price came in at $11.90 with the lowest price at $7.08. Revenue has increased dramatically in the five years that Pandora has been publicly traded. Pandora brought in $19,333,000 in advertising and subscription fees in 2009. In 2013, Pandora brought in almost half a billion dollars at $427,145,000 before expenses. [3] In 2010 Pandora had 16 million users listening to 1.8 billion hours of music. Three years later in 2013, 65.6 million users listened to over 14 billion hours of music. Pandora’s most recent audience metrics for March of 2014 were just released (graphic below). Pandora also announced that after June of 2014 they will no longer publicize its monthly key audience metrics. [5]

Current Endeavors

Peet’s Coffee

In March of 2014, Pandora announced a brand new partnership with Peet’s Coffee & Tea. “Peet’s Coffee & Tea, a premier specialty coffee and tea company, and Pandora, the leading internet radio service, announced a new partnership which marks the first time Pandora will feature partner branded radio stations in a brick-and-mortar environment nationwide” (Pandora) [7]. Peet’s coffee will now play its own customized radio stations in all of the stores across the United States. What makes these stations unique to Peet’s is that they will all be curated by a 25-year employee and music aficionado Patrick Main, not to mention the fact that the new Peet’s stations will be available to all Pandora listeners. Peet’s will have four personalized stations that are meant to pair well with their coffees using music outside what is played on mainstream radio. The stations include Peet’s Melodic Indie meant for bright and fresh coffees, Peet’s Jazz Giants reflecting Peet’s Italian Roast and espressos, Peet’s Origins which enhances Peet’s earthy African blends, and finally Peet’s Eclectic Classical station that should be paired with Peet’s French Roast. This partnership is quite the impressive business venture for both Peet’s and Pandora. Peet’s will be able to compete with the music in rivals like Starbucks that already has a partnership with Apple and iTunes. Pandora will also benefit as they are trying to compete with other streaming services like Spotify and Rdio. Peet’s customers hopefully will enjoy the musical selections in Peet’s coffee shops which will help Peet’s retain customers and help Pandora gain more subscribers. This partnership could be the first of many for Pandora as they attempt to gain more market share in the online streaming world.

Royalty Lawsuit

Although Pandora has been doing very well recently in terms of subscribers and partnerships, they have also gained a lot of negative press in regards to their catalog and royalty payments. In April of 2014, the three major labels Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music Entertainment, along with indie labels ABKCO and RIAA, filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in New York state court against Pandora. The suit on Pandora is for playing pre-February 15, 1972 recordings without making any royalty payments. “The labels say both digital music services (Pandora & SiriusXM) take advantage of a copyright loophole, since the master recording for copyright wasn’t created federally until 1972. But the labels claim that their master recordings are protected by individual state copyright laws and therefore deserve royalty payments” (Christman) [8]. Michael Huppe, the CEO and President of SoundExchange, a non-profit performance rights organization, estimated that artists and labels have lost 60 million dollars in royalty payments for pre-1972 songs in just 2013 alone.

This lawsuit has come after many artists, like legendary guitarist and songwriter Steve Cropper, have complained about the lack of payments from streaming services, especially Pandora. Songwriters are asking to be compensated for their work due to the fact that Pandora and other streaming services are profiting off of their original content. The case filed against SiriusXM in February is very similar and further along in the legal process. We can expect to see some important rulings and clarity in this case shortly, which will directly affect the Pandora case and whether courts believe songwriters should be compensated for pre-1972 works. SiriusXM’s hearing is set for May 14th. These two cases are extremely important for the world of streaming, as many music industry experts believe streaming is the future of recorded music. A ruling in favor of songwriters and artists could potentially ease the tension between the two camps and have all artists begin to support streaming. Currently many artists are against streaming because they don’t feel they are being properly compensated; however, streaming is significantly more convenient for consumers and could notably help reduce illegal downloading. [8]

Upcoming

Screen Shot 2014-04-20 at 6.15.23 PM

Step 2

Pandora also recently announced that they will be taking open music submissions. This will now make it easier than ever for independent artists to get their music out to over 70 million active listeners on the site. This is an initiative that Pandora will continue to pursue in the coming year in hopes to give independent artists a chance to reach a bigger audience. All independent artists need to do is submit their material digitally online for consideration.

Pandora has a bright future in the online streaming world if they can solve their differences with record labels and songwriters. Their initiatives in the consumer space, like with Peet’s Coffee, and their goals to help independent artists will make them a more attractive destination for music listeners to go to for content.

 

Works Cited

[1] Pandora – Pandora Logo RT: March 25, 2014

[2] Pandora – About Pandora RT: March 25, 2014

[3] Pandora – 2013 Anual Report RT: April 15, 2014

[4] Pandora – Skip Policy RT: March 25, 2014

[5] Pandora – Corporate Overview RT: March 25, 2014

[6] Pandora – 2014 Audience Metrics RT: April 15, 2014

[7] Pandora – Peet’s Coffee Partnership RT: April 7, 2014

[8] Billboard Magazine – Pandora Lawsuit RT: April 18, 2014

[9] The Trichordist – SiriusXM Royalty Payment Sheet RT: April 15, 2014

[10] Pandora – Music Submission for Independent Artists RT: March 25, 2014

Weinstein Company

Posted on by 
By Roxy Silver
[1] The Weinstein Company Logo

[1] The Weinstein Company Logo

HISTORY

Brothers Bob and Harvey Weinstein founded Miramax Films in 1979 and sold it to Disney in 1993. In 2005, they launched The Weinstein Company, TWC, a multimedia and distribution company that encompasses Dimension Films, a genre-label founded in 1993 by Bob Weinstein [2]. TWC and Dimension Films have released mainstream genre and specialty films [3]. Recently the company has made a huge push in its television division.

KEY EXECUTIVES

Harvey

[4] Harvey Weinstein, Co-Chairman TWC

[5] Bob Weinstein, Co-Chairman TWC & Dimension Films

[5] Bob Weinstein, Co-Chairman TWC & Dimension Films

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FINANCIALS

TWC is privately held. Box office wise, currently TWC is ranked 9th with 2.5% of the market share, grossing $69.1 million from its 8 films [6]. This marks a decrease from the prior year in which TWC ranked 8th with 4.5% market share, grossing $491.7 million while releasing 21 films [7].

IN THEATERS

[7]

[8] Lee Daniels’ The Butler captures the story of a White House butler who served seven presidents through dramatic and changing times in American history.

“Lee Daniels’ The Butler”

The drama starring Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey “was expected to do well, but we didn’t expect to do this well,” shared Erik Lomis, President of Distribution for TWC. “The Butler” is the company’s first No. 1 debut since 2009 [9] with an opening weekend of $24.6 million on August 16, 2013 [10]. The film has accumulated grosses of $116.6 million domestically and grossed $146.5 million internationally [11].

 

 

 

 

 

[12]

[12] Vampire Academy is based on a best selling series about two “mortal vampires” who attend a boarding school and have to protect each other from the terrible forces.

“Vampire Academy”

The highly anticipated fantasy film was a flop for TWC. In attempt to imitate the success of box office hits like “Twilight” and “The Hunger Games,” this young-adult adaption didn’t compliment the best-selling book series as the box office sales attest: It premiered in theaters on February 7, 2014, reeling in $3.9 million during its opening weekend [13]. The film has accumulated grosses of $7.79 million domestically and $7.6 million foreign, totaling $15.3 million worldwide [14].

 

 

 

 

 AWARDS SEASON

TWC had an extremely successful year leading up to The Academy Awards, but fell short with only 11 nominations compared to the 17 from the year before [15]. Regardless, the three films nominated received wide recognition.

[21]

[16] 20 Feet From Stardom

“20 Feet From Stardom”

“Millions know their voices, but no one knows their names”- “20 Feet From Stardom” is a documentary that told the story of Darlene Love who backed up idols, Stevie Wonder, Frank Sinatra, Luther Vandross and Elvis Presley. The film shared her story of struggle of being feet away from the spotlight, but never making it [17]. This film was TWC’s only Academy Award winner for Best Documentary Feature [18].

 

 

 

[24]

[19] Philomena

“Philomena” 

Philomena captures the story of a mother searching for her son but instead finding his gay lover. The drama was nominated for Best Picture, Best Original Score, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay, but didn’t win any awards at the Oscars [20]. With an opening weekend of $128,435, to date the film combines $37.5 million domestic with $62.4 million foreign, netting TWC $87.9 million [21].

 

 

 

[25]

[22] August: Osage County

“August: Osage County”

The dark comedy based on a Pulitzer Prize winning play portrays a dysfunctional family coming together after a death. Starring Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, it was nominated for two Oscars[23]. The film had a limited opening weekend of $179,302 in December 2013 and a wide opening of $7.1 million [24]. The film has accumulated $37.7 million domestically and $34.7 million foreign, netting TWC $52.4 million [24].

 

 

 

STRATEGICALLY TWC TAKES ON TV 

A $370 million line of credit from Union Bank helped TWC enter the television market in 2013 [25]. TWC’s COO David Glasser explained, “We’ve invested a lot in TV because we see it as a big part of our future.”[26] Now in 2014 the future is here. Having TV under TWC’s belt is an asset creating versatile operations, revenue, and a presence in the TV industry.

Source: Add Letters

TWC acquired the U.S. distribution rights to the Sky Italia drama series, ‘Gomorra’ from Beta Film, an international distributor [27]. Stefano Sollima directed this series based on a bestselling novel about the Neapolitan crime administration Camorra, and is set for release in 2015 [28]. Harvey Weinstein shares “This project caught our eye a while back for its world-class acting talent, as well as Sollima’s abilities to craft a thriller like none other.” [29] This acquisition benefits TWC with new innovative programming, and Beta Film providing ‘Gomorra’ access into American homes.

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With the buzz generated from “Netflix Original Series,” TWC is jumping in. The highly anticipated Weinstein Company drama ,“Marco Polo”, is in production for Netflix and will premiere nearing the end of 2014 [30]. Harvey Weinstein reported, “We are proud to present a series that rivals some of the most successful films we’ve ever made. We are excited to introduce him (Marco Polo) to the world.” [31]

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TWC‘s recent partnership with media company Gannett gives TWC an advantage with exclusive access to use Gannett’s expansive media library and retain distribution rights from Gannett’s television stations, newspapers, and digital assets [32]. Weinstein’s President of Television Maryam Banikarim, told Street Insider, “This groundbreaking venture will allow us to discover and explore rich new narratives for a wide array of audiences.” [33]

COMING SOON TO THEATERS NEAR YOU

TWC is continuing their Oscar worthy slate of films this summer, staying true to their demographics and genres of past films. These soon-to-be hit films with A-list names will hopefully yield them success at the 2015 Oscar’s and in the box office.

“The Giver”

The Giver Trailer [34]

“The Giver”, a science-fiction film, directed by Phillip Noyce stars Oscar winners Meryl Streep, Katie Holms, Jeff Bridges, and singer Taylor Swift [35]. The film, which various companies attempted to produce previously, is loosely based on the classic 1993 Lois Lowry novel. Jeff Bridges called it “your next favorite movie.” [36] The story, set to release in August, illustrates a utopian society in which a boy is chosen to learn from an elder the true pains and pleasures of the real world [37]. 

“Sin City: A Dame to Kill For”

Sin City Trailer [38]

The drama/thriller film directed by Robert Rodriguez [39], is a sequel to the successful 2005 Weinstein film “Sin City” which domestically grossed $74 million [40]. The black and white, 3D-esque thriller will be hitting the screens in August. The star packed cast includes Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Lady Gaga, Jeremy Piven, Jessica Alba, and Bruce Wills to name a few [41]. Considering the triumph the original picture had and the megastar cast “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” will likely attract crowds to the box office.

“Begin Again”

Begin Again Trailer [42]

The romantic-comedy film from writer-director John Carney is set to release on July 4th [43]. “Begin Again” follows a distressed ex-recrod label executive, Mark Ruffalo, fall in love with a young singer-songwriter, Kira Knightley, after her boyfriend, Adam Levine, dumped her [44]. At the Tribecca Film Festival Carney explained, “Begin Again is a true New York story about magical opportunities.” [45] This classic summer “romcom” will catch movie goers attention from the star studded cast, to the simple yet entertaining plot.

FUTURE OF TWC

The future for TWC is positive and optimistic. Prior to last year TWC was a dominant player in Oscar awards. Presuming this year was a fluke, TWC should bounce back stronger next Oscar season. Additionally, the significant infusion of cash into its TV segment, will bolster the company’s position in the industry, while likely improving its bottom line.

 Sources

[1] Weinstein Company Logo, Ramascreen.com, RT: 4/12/2014

[2] “About The Weinstein Company”, Weinsteinco.com, RT: 4/11/2014

[3] “Dimension Films”, Disney.Wika.com, RT: 4/11/2014

[4] Harvey Weinstein, Co-Chairman, Time, RT: 4/10/2014

[5] Bob Weinstein, Co-Chairman TWC & Dimension Films, Zimbo.com, RT:4/10/2014

[6] Studio Market Share 2014, BoxofficeMojo.com, RT: 4/15/2014

[7] Studio Market Share 2013, BoxofficeMojo.com, RT: 4/15/2014

[8] Lee Daniels’ The Butler Movie Poster, IMBD, RT: 4/12/2014

[9] “The Butler’ Serves Up Box-Office Sucess at No. 1”, Fox News, 8/18/2013, RT: 4/12/2014

[10] “Weekend Box Office: ‘Lee Daniels’ The Butler Wins Again”, Movie Fone, 8/25/2013, RT: 4/12/201

[11] Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2013), BoxofficeMojo.com, RT: 4/13/2014

[12] Vampire Academy Movie Poster, themidnightgarden.com, RT: 4/14/2014

[13] “BOX OFFICE: Vampire Academy’ Has No Bite”, Yahoo Movies, 2/10/2014, RT: 4/14/2014

[14] Vampire Academy (2014), BoxofficeMojo.com, RT: 4/14/2014

[15] OSCARS: Nominations By Studio & Distributor, Deadline Hollywood, RT: 4/12/2014

[16] 20 Feet From Stardom Movie Poster, Filmberg.com, RT: 4/13/2014

[17] “20 Feet From Stardom Synopsis”, 20feetfromstardom.com, RT: 4/12/2014

[18] “Oscars 2014: ’20 Feet From Stardom’ wins for documentary”, Los Angles Times, 3/02/2014, RT: 4/12/2014

[19] Philomena Movie Poster, impawards.com, RT: 4/14/2014

[20] Oscar Nominations By Picture, Deadline Hollywood, RT: 4/14/2014

[21] Philomena (2013), Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 4/14/2014

[22] August: Osage County Movie Poster, broadyway.com, RT: 4/15/2014

[23] “Harvey Weinstein on disappointing Oscar showing for ‘Osage County’ have only myself to blame”, Entertainment Weekly, 2/21/2014, RT: 4/15/2014

[24] August: Osage County (2013), Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 4/15/2014

[25] “The Weinstein Co. Finalizing $370 Million Credit Facility: Report”, Deadline Hollywood, 9/19/2013, RT: 4/16/2014

[26] “The Weinstein Company: stirring drama”, ScreenDaily.com, 4/02/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[27] “TWC Closes Deal for U.S. Rights to Italy’s ‘Gomorrah’ Skein”, Variety, 4/07/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[28] “Weinstein to build Gomorra in US”, c21media.net, 3/08/2014, RT: 4/17/2014

[29] Weinstein Co Acquires Italian Crime Drama Series ‘Gomorra’ , Deadline Hollywood, 4/08/2014, RT: 4/15/2014

[30] Marco Polo (TV Series 2014), IMBD, RT: 4/18/2014

[31] “‘Marco Polo’: Production underway for Weinstein Company’s Netflix Show”, Entertainment Weekly, 4/08/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[32] “Gannett (GCI) and The Weinstein Co. Enter First Look Film And Television Deal”, Streetinsider.com, 4/02/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[33] “Gannnett Co., Ince And The Weinstein Company Enter Into A Unique First Look Film And Television Development Deal”, PR News Wire, 4/02/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[34] The Giver Trailer, YouTube, 3/19/2014, RT: 4/14/2014

[35] “Weinstein Dates ‘The Giver’ Starring Meryl Streep and Jeff Bridges for August 2014”, IMBD, 9/21/2013, RT: 4/16/2014

[36] “Jeff Bridges Talks About Your Next Favorite Movie”, Moviepilot.com, 2/12/2014,  RT: 4/16/2014

[37] “‘The Giver’ trailer: Meryl Streep! Jeff Bridges! Color?!”, Entertainment Weekly, 3/19/2014, RT: 4/17/2014

[38] “Sin City 2″ Trailer Release”, Weinsteinco.com, 3/17/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[39] Sin City: A Dame To Kill For Trailer, YouTube, 4/06/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[40] Sin City (2005), Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 4/17/2014

[41] “5 Reasons you should be excited for Sin City: A Dame To Kill For”, Metro, 3/07/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[42] Begin Again Trailer, YouTube, 3/28/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[43] “‘Begin Again’ Movie 2014 Official Trailer Released Starring Adam Levine and Keira Knightley”, Hallels.com, 4/01/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[44] “Trailer and Poster for Begin Again Starring Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo”, Movienewz.com, 4/03/2014, RT: 4/16/2014

[45] “Begin Again To Close Tribeca Film Festival”, Triebcaflim.com, 3/20/2014, RT: 4/16/2014