In its 10-Q filing with the SEC, Amazon detailed the components of the MGM deal, which closed March 17. The assets “primarily consist of $3.4 billion of video content,” with the acquisition price including $4.9 billion of goodwill, which is defined as “the established reputation of a business regarded as a quantifiable asset.”
April, 2022
Apple Music and Other Apple Services Now Have Over 825 Million Subs
Apple’s services – including Apple Music, Apple TV+, and Apple Fitness+ – generated a record high of $19.82 billion on the quarter. The sum signifies a roughly 17.28 percent increase from the same three-month stretch in 2021 and an approximately 1.56 percent increase from Q1 FY 2022. While the iPhone designer doesn’t break down its subscribers by service, paid subscriptions jumped past 825 million, as highlighted – an improvement of 40 million against the prior quarter.
Source: Apple Music and Other Apple Services Now Have Over 825 Million Subs
John Legend’s NFT platform just raised $7.5m, led by The Sandbox parent Animoca Brands
Today (April 29), Our Happy Company has revealed that it’s raised $7.5 million in a seed round led by Infinity Ventures Crypto and Animoca Brands, the parent of gaming platform The Sandbox (which recently partnered with Warner Music Group to create a music-themed world in the metaverse). Our Happy Company says that the new funding will be used to grow and develop its OurSong NFT platform.
Source: John Legend’s NFT platform just raised $7.5m, led by The Sandbox parent Animoca Brands
Twitch reportedly wants a bigger cut of streamers’ revenue.
Twitch is considering upping its own cut to 50%, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. That would bring Partner streamers down to the 50/50 split Twitch currently has with Affiliate streamers. But that change isn’t set in stone. Twitch is also considering another option: a tier-based system, where some Partners would continue making 70% from channel subs while some would make the new, lower 50%.
Tencent Music to help Chinese artists distribute globally
‘One-Click For All’ will ping tracks out to more than 150 DSPs around the world, including Spotify, YouTube and Apple Music, within seven working days. Tencent Musician will provide each track with an ISRC code for free as part of the feature, and will pay artists 70% of the royalties collected from those overseas platforms.
Source: Tencent Music to help Chinese artists distribute globally – Music Ally
T Bone Burnett Reveals New Analog Audio Format; Tested by Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan has re-recorded some of his classic songs using the technology, but they’re not available to the public yet. According to the press release, the producer is hoping to “reset the valuation for recorded music.” The Ionic Originals format features “lacquer painted onto an aluminum disc, with a spiral etched into it by music.” T Bone Burnett’s development is the first major move in analog music reproduction in more than 70 years as vinyl became the standard.
Source: T Bone Burnett Reveals New Analog Audio Format; Tested by Bob Dylan
Could the Music Catalog Rights Boom Generate Windfalls for Non-Superstars?
A bevy of legacy acts, including Shakira, Neil Young, and Barry Manilow, all covered the same hot new investor song — “Music Is A Dependable Asset Class” — and traded catalogs for cash from funds, investors, and other financial outfits. Now, an intriguing question — and its potentially lucrative answer — has me and many others up late: Can smaller artists cash out, too? Can investors apply the same equation, and capture equally dependable returns, from the little guys?
Source: Could the Music Catalog Rights Boom Generate Windfalls for Non-Superstars?
Netflix & Big Streaming Beasts To Fall Under UK Regulatory System For First Time
Netflix and other big streaming companies will fall under strict UK regulation for the first time as the government says it will revamp the “decades-old” laws that govern Public Service Broadcasting. Streamers operating in the UK could be fined up to 5% of their revenues if they are found guilty of showcasing harmful content, according to a landmark White Paper released today by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
Theater Owners Chief Warns Hollywood: Day-and-Date Releases Are “Dead as a Serious Business Model”
National Association of Theatre Owners president and CEO John Fithian didn’t mince words when addressing the reason why releasing movies in cinemas and in the home at the same time is a very bad idea. “I am pleased to announce that simultaneous release is dead as a serious business model, and piracy is what killed it,” Fithian said when giving his annual address at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Source: Theater Owners Chief Warns Hollywood: Day-and-Date Releases Are “Dead as a Serious Business Model”
Spotify Subscribers Crawl to 182M as Quarterly Revenue Grows 24%
Spotify added just 2 million premium subscribers in the first quarter of 2022 and wrapped up March with a total of 182 million paid users and 252 million ad-supported listeners. While that paid subscriber tally was a million under guidance, the company was quick to note that its wind-down in Russia, following its invasion of Ukraine, resulted in an “involuntary churn” of roughly 1.5 million subscribers there.
Source: Spotify Subscribers Crawl to 182M as Quarterly Revenue Grows 24%