Pandora

Posted on December 1, 2014 by ajlopez

 by: Andrea Lopez

Pandora Image – [1]

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]

courtesy of : Human Genome Project – [4 ]

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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.

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].

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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 [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].

: 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

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.

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:

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

Pandora

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Jamie Neukrug

By Jamie Neukrug

The Pandora Media Inc. Logo [1]

Pandora Media Inc.

2101 Webster Street
16th Floor
Oakland, CA 94612
Phone Number: (510) 451 4100
URL: http://www.pandora.com
Twitter Handle: pandora_radio

Key Executives

la-et-ct-pandora-brian-mcandrews-ceo-20130911-001 [2] Brian McAndrews–CEO, President, & Chairman

tim-westergren [3]Tim Westergren–Chief Strategy Officer,Founder

PANDORA RADIO/BUSINESS [4] Tom Conrad–Chief Technology Officer

Unknown [5] Mike Herring–Chief Financial Officer

Pandora Radio [6]

A Brief History

In January 2000, Tim Westergren founded a company called Savage Beast Technologies, based on his idea to develop a music genome. This technology was used to develop playlists based on individual consumer preferences. Westergren originally marketed these music recommendation service businesses without much success. In 2004, he shifted his target audiences from businesses to individual users and changed the name to Pandora. Listenership increased sharply. A 2007 ruling on increased royalty prices threatened to ruin Pandora, but the issue was resolved in 2009. The introduction of the iPhone app that allowed people to stream music was a game changer. [7]

Financial Information

Pandora earns the majority of its revenue (87%, 87%, and 88% in the last three years) through computer and mobile based advertising sales. The company offers a free subscription plan which generates revenue through these advertisements, as well as Pandora One, which offers a commercial free option to subscribers for a fee. The ability to reach audiences through mobile and other “on-the-go” devices has increased profits significantly. Total revenue has grown from $137.8 million in 2011 to $427.1 million in 2013. Pandora Media Inc.’s common stock on the NASDAQ market, NYSE, is currently valued at $28.45, a 1.01% decrease from its previous close, as it continues to fluctuate. Based on the latest report, Pandora has over 70% share of internet radio within the top 20 stations in the United States. [8]

The Numbers [8]

Year	Total Revenue (in millions):	Listener Hours (in billions):	Active Users (in millions):
2011	$137,800	3.83	29.3
2012	$274,340	8.23	47.6
2013	$427,145	14.01	65.6

About Pandora

Pandora’s Business Model [9]

By allowing its subscribers to dictate the type of songs and comedy they want to hear, Pandora has become internet radio’s market leader in the United States. Listener playlists are developed based on their feedback from a library of songs that have been categorized based on hundreds of musical qualities. Since its inception, Pandora has grown to have 200,000,000 registered users, over 1,000,000 songs in its collection, over 4 billion stations created, and has expanded internationally to Australia and New Zealand. Listeners can mix up to 100 stations, customizing them to their liking. They can also create profiles and connect with others based on mutual preferences. In addition to computers, Pandora has expanded to mobile “apps” on smartphones such as Blackberry, Android, the iPhone, and other interactive devices including the Android tablets, iPad, and Amazon Kindle Fire, and the Nook. Pandora made deals with car companies, including BMW and Buick, and can now be accessed in vehicles. [10] [11]

chart-of-the-day-internet-only-audio-providers-june-2010

Pandora Media vs. Other Internet Audio Providers [12]

The Music Genome Project sets Pandora apart from competition. [13]

The Music Genome Project®

Pandora’s executive team recognizes the need to accommodate the individual musical tastes of subscribers. The Music Genome Project® is the most intricate system ever created to choose music based on its characteristics. Trained musicologists thoroughly analyze songs based on attributes such as voice, tone, genre, and rhythm. The library includes everything from the week’s Top 40 to classic hits from past decades. The project is often compared to human DNA because every detail is diverse. Musicologists utilize the data stored in the Music Genome Project® to create a satisfying, unique listening experience for all. [14]

Celine Dion performed in NYC in October. [15]

Pandora Presents

“Pandora Presents” is Pandora’s series of live concerts that allow listeners to connect with their favorite artists. Originating in 2012, these performances continue to be a successful display of user appreciation and set Pandora apart from competition. Pandora employees personalize it further by using listenership they have identified for specific artists to invite certain users to attend the show. [16]

During a recent October concert in Los Angeles, recording artist, Bridgit Mendler, mentioned Pandora’s role in helping to develop her fan base. [17] Celine Dion performed in New York City on October 29, 2013, promoting her new album “Loved Me Back to Life.” Past entertainers include Dr. Dog, Walk the Moon, Theophilus London, and other emerging artists.

[18]

Recent News

Pandora Media vs. iTunes Radio

Pandora vs. iTunes Radio [19]

With Apple Inc.’s recent release of its new service, iTunes radio, Pandora’s competition continues to grow. Like Pandora, it creates playlists based on the music the listeners’ choose. It also features the same service options, one with advertisements and commercial free iTunes Match. iTunes Radio allows users to view their entire history and categorize songs by “Hits,” “Variety,” and “Discovery.” [19] Both services allow users to post to Twitter or Facebook, but while Pandora posts both song and station, iTunes only provides the latter. Apple hopes their loyal 575 million iTunes users will convert to iTunes Radio.

Despite the fact that this new application is just as technologically advanced, Mike Herring, Pandora’s Chief Financial Officer, stated that listening hours grew 9% since last month. Pandora’s market share rose to 8.06% in October 2013 from 7.77% in September, when iTunes Radio was first released. [20]

Other Competition: Pandora Media Inc. also competes with broadcast radio providers including Clear Channel, CBS and Sirius XM, a satellite radio provider. Additional rivals include online radio providers such as CBS’s Last.fm, Slacker Personal Radio, and Clear Channel’s iheartradio and interactive media stations RDIO, Apple’s iTunes Music Store, Spotify, Rhapsody, and Amazon. [8]

Pandora Mobile [22]

Pandora Removes 40-Hour-Per-Month Limit: Pandora has removed its 40-hour-per-month limit on free mobile listening, allowing people unlimited time to use the service. Pandora was able to make this change due to its success in mobile revenue advertising, trailing only Google and Facebook. The limit was placed in March 2013 to control royalty costs, but management eliminated it to stay on top of their competition. [21]

iPad Redesign: On September 18, 2013, Pandora released the Pandora 5.0 for the iPad. This was the greatest redesign of the app since its launch in April 2010. The iPad’s large screen and touch capability allows users to easily navigate and search their favorite music. This update was made for Android tablets as well. Pandora 5.0 features more intricate music discovery and exploration, a personal music profile and newsfeed, and the ability to connect and share music with friends. [23] [24]

Pandora 5.0 on Android Tablets [24]

Pandora on Google Chromecast: Pandora is also now available on Google Chromecast, a TV-connected device that delivers audio and video signals wirelessly to any screen in your home. Chromecast consumers can now use Pandora with the click of their smartphone or tablet. Once the music is sent to the television, the device is no longer needed for the music to continue. The Play, Pause, Thumb, and Skip buttons are still managed through the mobile device used. Listeners can customize the music they choose with Google Play or the App Store. [25] [26]

Sources:

[1] Dayandadream.com: Pandora Media Inc. Logo

[2] LA Times: Brian McAndrews Image

[3] Business Innovation Factory: Tim Westergren Image

[4] Mercury News: Tom Conrad Image

[5] Apple Insider: Mike Herring Image

[6] Pandoraradioformac.org Internet Radio Image Source

[7] NY Times Article History of Pandora

[8] Pandora’s Financial Information (Annual Report/Form 10-K)

[9] Bizibly.wordpress.com: Pandora Business Model Image Source

[10] Pandora.com: About Pandora Media Inc.

[11] Pandora.com/mobile: Pandora Going Mobile