pink floyd

Pink Floyd drummer uncharacteristically praises music streaming. The iconic rock band has been a staunch and excoriating opponent of Pandora in the past, criticising the leading Internet radio platform for seeking lower royalty payouts. Speaking independently of the band, drummer Nick Mason granted an interview with the Wall Street Journal (“Streaming Is the Future”). Pandora wasn’t mentioned, but Spotify was, a lot. “Spotify for us was a success.” Mason seems to be basking in an epiphany: “Now it’s becoming clear that streaming is not another form of piracy.”

Rhapsody will add BandPage profiles. Music subscription service Rhapsody, which recently transitioned its leadership and suffered a deep-cut staff layoff, is adding a dimension to its programming through a partnership with BandPage. BandPage offer fan engagements and monetization opportunities to artists, who can craft experiences ranging from meet-and-greets to song critiques. Rhapsody will bundle BandPage experiences into its platform, synchronized with listener searches for participating bands. The partnership could be a pioneering way of inserting high-touch artist experiences into low-pay music streaming, increasing revenue for the band and engagement for the user.

Lefsetz on change. Bob Lefstez’s editorial rampages (see The Lefsetz Letter) are always entertaining, if not always on the money. The recent rant about iOS 7 was a lot of whine for the dime. Today’s disquisition (distractingly titled “Porn”) examines shifting consumer demands and the devaluation of legacy music assets and business models. “Change is constant. The key is to see the opportunities as opposed to mourning the loss.”

Rdio adds a feature. Lean-forward listening platform Rdio is encouraging lean-back use with its new Recommendations segment, fueled by Rdio’s ongoing relationship with The Echo Nest. The new feature surfaces albums, stations, and playlists based on usage history. It’s available on desktop now. Mobile-first evangelists would say that nothing is launched which isn’t a phone app, and presumably Rdio will roll out Recommendations to iOS and Android. (See Rdio’s blog announcement.)

The three surviving members of rock royalty Pink Floyd attacked leading webcaster Pandora today for its efforts to reduce its music licensing costs in USA Today.

An op-ed from the band seems mostly constructed around oft-repeated talking points from the RIAA and music industry lobby group musicFIRST.

After the record industry corralled recording artists for its campaign to stop the "Internet Radio Fairness Act" (more here) in the last Congress, Pandora began to reach out to artists for support. The webcaster hopes to show Congress that there are recording artists who value Pandora as a promotional vehicle, and understand that royalty relief may be vital to its survival.

Again, using the well-worn tropes of earlier music industry efforts, Pink Floyd characterizes Pandora's efforts as an attempt to "trick artists" in their efforts to "slash royalties." Even the peril of an "85% artist pay cut," and the accusation that Pandora wants "growth of its business directly at the expense of artists' paychecks," are nearly word-for-word rehash of SoundExchange press releases.

One more-interesting sentiment from the band's op-ed: They want Pandora's help to get them royalties from AM/FM radio.

"Artists would gladly work with Pandora to end AM/FM's radio exemption from paying any musician royalties," Pink Floyd wrote, in apparent belief that webcasters' lobby on Capitol Hill could achieve something the record industry's can't.

Read Pink Floyd's op-ed in USA Today here.